All My Heroes
by Captain Hilts
Summary: After collecting a bounty, Boba Fett is confronted with the only person to ever stow away aboard Slave I, and soon is caught up in much more than he bargained for... Pre Ep. IV.
1. Small Cargo

**Author's note: Hello there! Just a few formalities…I do not own 'Star Wars,' of course. As much as I would like to say Boba Fett is my character- he's not. And that's probably a good thing. :D Hope you enjoy! Please leave a few comments…I'd like to know how I'm doing, and if there are any 'Star Wars' things I should add. Haha. Happy Reading!! ~ Captain Hilts. **

Embers glowed in the darkness from the end of the cigarette. Thin trails of smoke coiled gently into the air soon after and the gambling man leaned forward, propping his elbows up on the table. He placed the greasy cards before him, revealing his hand. The surrounding colleagues all groaned in disbelief, throwing down their collections distastefully. The man smiled, slightly lifting the cigarette from his lips.

"I win again, gentleman…but I'm feeling generous tonight; what do you say to another round of drinks and one last game?"

His companions looked amongst themselves cautiously, muttering incoherent words. The man spread his hands invitingly.

"One more game, Roth," the gambler to his left grumbled, "But I am still getting the sense you cheat."

Roth laughed, sending smoke into the air. He shook his head, turning to look out across the massive lake that stretched the length of the horizon, fringed with trees. The greenish light from the moon reflected on the still surface.

"Yes," added another, "You have quite enough credits as it is."

Roth turned back to the table, feeling a cool breeze rustle his hair.

"I need to have a little fun now and again." He chuckled, "Why don't you enjoy yourselves?"

The gamblers all managed laughs, shaking their heads. Cards were shuffled once gain and another game began. Roth stabbed out the remains of his cigarette and reached for a fresh one, relishing the sharp odor of spice in his nostrils. Betting chips clattered back into place and cards repeatedly snapped. Distant laughter from other tables scattered along the veranda echoed slightly through the air. Soon the latest hand was dealt and Roth once again pondered a way to win.

As he debated the newest round of cards, thoughtfully drumming the armrests of his chair, he became aware that the laughter had faded away around them. Curiously, Roth lifted his gaze, parting his lips to speak. A new visitor had joined them, standing silently to his left. Firelight from the hanging lanterns flickered oddly across the two of them. Roth allowed himself a slight smile.

"How nice of you to join us, bounty hunter."

The gamblers seated around them fidgeted uncomfortably. One of them twitched nervously, causing a small tower of chips to spill across the table in a colorful heap.

"It is done," rasped the visitor.

Roth nodded slightly, taking the cigarette from his mouth. Gently exhaling a coil of smoke, he asked,

"Where is he?"

The bounty hunter said nothing. Instead, he tossed an object on to the table amidst the playing cards. Roth arched a dubious brow, the cigarette hovering close to his lips. With a small sigh, he tucked it into the corner of his mouth and reached for the thing presented to him. It was a small ragged leather bag tied with a string. Roth sensed the soft material inside and cautiously pulled the twine, pouring the contents into his outstretched palm.

Charcoal black ashes slipped between his fingers like sand. The surrounding gamblers gasped in disgust; Roth scowled, shaking the ashes from his hand.

"I believe you owe me," said the bounty hunter.

Roth stared up at him, into the expressionless visage of the scuffed T-visor helmet.

"If you were to kill him," he began, "this is not how I intended it."

Roth watched as their visitor shifted his weight, hands folding tightly over a slender black rifle. The men on either side of him swallowed visibly and pulled distractedly on their clothes.

"You failed to specify," rasped the armor-clad hunter, "And as unfortunate as it may be for you, it was a method that could not be avoided." He paused and tilted his head slightly. "You owe me."

Roth let out a light laugh, taking a calming drag from his cigarette. Smoke gently floated into the air and was swept away by the breeze. He looked away from the bounty hunter, once again settling his gaze on the glittering surface of the lake. Roth smiled.

"You are indeed a dangerous man, Boba Fett."

He received no reply, and Roth laughed, shaking his head.

"Yes. Avery dangerous man."

He reached beneath the table and a small black box shined dully in the greenish moonlight as Roth dropped it on the surface beside the ashes.

"Twenty-five thousand Imperial Credits. You will find it all accounted for."

Boba Fett reached with a long arm and laid his hand on the box, flicking open the latch with his thumb. He inspected the prize inside wordlessly. Roth watched as the emotionless gaze turned to him once more; Fett gave a slight nod.

"A pleasure doing business."

Roth grinned, sending out one last trail of smoke as he watched the bounty hunter pick up his reward, turning to leave. Boba Fett faded into the night and Roth never saw him again.

*******

Arbola was a strangely quiet planet. It outwardly appeared peaceful; one may find it hard to believe and Imperial garrison existed there, though it seemed almost normal for the Empire to take hold of another planet as 'quietly' as it had taken Arbola. It had been sitting off by itself too long; apparently the Empire saw that as irksome.

The air was crisp and the light from the moon was splintered through the branches of the immense trees that covered the surface. They could grow as tall as sky scrapers and their bark was the color of red clay. Together with several large lakes dotting the planet, they created a cool atmosphere and a sweet smell to the air. The stars gleamed brightly where they could be seen and wisps of clouds hung in the sky above.

Boba Fett could no longer appreciate such beauty. He walked quietly yet swiftly, crunching twigs and leaves beneath his boots. A breeze snapped at the small cape hanging from his shoulder, distorting his shadow below. His reflection followed him as he marched along the landing pad resting beside the lake.

Ahead, _Slave I_ waited.

A slight feeling of relief came to him at the sight of the old _Firespray-31-class_ ship, as battle-scarred as the Mandalorian armor he wore.

The latest bounty had taken much longer to acquire than anticipated; the scumbag had wanted his wicked life badly enough to attempt to kill Fett- hence the disintegration. It was the quickest way out, and often he would have preferred to bring back merchandise unharmed…but as always, he had to account for the unpredictable.

As he approached _Slave I_, faint voices could be heard, nearly masked by the rattling of the branches above. Fett stopped walking, his fingers curling tighter over the grip of his rifle. Two figures moved in the shadows, circling the left wing of the ship.

"Let's get outta here," came one of the voices, "It isn't worth the trouble."

"What trouble?!" the other snapped, "Do you know how much money we can get? It's _completely_ worth it! Now where the hell-?"

"But what if he comes back and we're still _here_?!"

Fett waited, shifting the rifle carefully in his palms. The figures stepped from the shadow of the wing into the light. They were young men, dressed in filthy clothes and ratty boots. Their hair was long and matted; stubble covered their faces. They were dangerously close to his ship, so close in fact that one of them could lay a dirty hand on the armor.

But Fett waited. He let out a slight sigh and listened to them again.

"I want to get out of here. Do you even know whose ship that is? He'll _kill_ us!"

It was in that moment the men noticed him. Their eyes widened in fear and their mouths fell open to form words that refused to come. Fett almost smiled.

"Uh…we were just leaving, sir," one stammered, "A little lost…we're a little lost…uhm. We'll just be on our way."

Boba Fett watched them scamper away like frightened animals, throwing terrified glances over their shoulders. Once they had disappeared, he started toward his ship, hitting a button on his wrist gauntlet to disable the security systems and open the cargo hold. He stepped up the ramp into the ship and closed it behind him, heading for the cockpit. After securing his rifle in its usual place and climbing up a small ladder, he slid into the pilot's seat and the control panel lit up before him as his fingers danced across the keyboard. The ship gave a small jump as the engines growled to life; Fett gripped the controls and guided _Slave I_ up into the sky. He leaned back in the seat as the ship tilted upright, flicking a few switches as it went. Tree branches brushed at the wings as the ship ascended; once free of their towering leaves, the viewport was filled with a navy blue sky peppered with stars and lit softly by the greenish moon. _Slave I_ abruptly lurched forward with a push from its powerful booster engines and was soon rocketing its way back through the atmosphere of Arbola.

Once into the infinite quiet of space, Fett turned the ship toward a distant star, punching a few coordinates into the hyperdrive. With a single flick of a switch, the stars blurred through the viewport and the ship lurched forward abruptly yet again as it adjusted to light speed. Fett listened to the usual sounds of his ship and sighed, feeling a dull pain in both his shoulders. The latest bounty had done more than drain his time- it had also sapped his energy. Watching the scene through the viewport for a moment, he decided to take this opportunity to rest. Hyperspace, in effect, was the only place he could allow himself proper recuperation. Boba Fett leaned further back into his seat and slipped into a dreamless sleep.

*******

He awoke to find _Slave I_ still on its course in hyperspace, slightly puzzled as to why he'd been unwillingly brought from sleep. After tapping a few keys, the computer revealed all systems to be functioning correctly; a quick scan of the exterior showed no trackers or peculiar markings had been placed on the hull. And yet…something wasn't right.

A distant noise caused him to pause at the control board. He turned to look over his shoulder, listening. It was not a noise he was used to hearing, however faint it had been. Something was where it did not belong. Quietly, Boba Fett slid from the pilot's chair and made his way back down through the ship, palming a blaster as he went. The digital displays on the inside of his helmet continued to scroll through the ship's systems, scanning for any irregularity. Fett did notice something slight; the fuel consumption was a bit higher than normal, though that could have been due to a number of factors.

A faint shadow played across the walls ahead; he sensed the movement rather than saw it. Quickening his pace though remaining relatively silent, Fett made his way through the narrow hallways toward the source of the movement. He found himself staring at _Slave I's_ interior cooling system, the thick coils twitching as they adjusted to the intake of air from the engines. The faint sound came yet again; he fell to one knee almost instantly, his hand reaching beneath the coils and pipes. A muffled squeal came to his ears as his fingers snatched cloth and pulled. Fett shoved the blaster into the intruder's face. His finger flexed around the trigger, but a shriek stopped him from following through with the shot.

It was a child.

"Don't shoot!"

Fett had grabbed a fistful of tunic and a few strands of hair; the barrel of his blaster was mere inches from the end of the child's nose. She gazed up at him with pleading eyes. Fett stared back at her, feeling a rare sense of surprise at what he was seeing. The girl watched him with wide eyes, her hand gripping his wrist as he held her awkwardly. The blaster was still pointed in her face. It took him a full minute to decide upon something to say.

"Why are you on my ship?" he growled.

"Hiding," the girl replied in a trembling voice.

Fett rose to his feet. The stowaway winced as he lifted her from the floor, dust floating down from the ends of her flyaway hair. Her breaths had quickened slightly as he adjusted his grip; she was scrawny in size and Fett could pick her up from her feet effortlessly. A small satchel swung strangely from her shoulder.

"You aren't going to hurt me…right?"

Fett holstered his blaster, moving to lift the girl under his arm like a package. She whined, kicking her legs.

"I can walk, put me down!"

She struggled a bit longer, and succeeded only in tiring herself. Fett let her slip slightly and she yelped, arms now dangling close to the floor. Her voice was muffled slightly once she spoke, her eyes following his boots as he marched along the ship.

"Where are you going? You're hurting me!"

Fett remained silent, trudging down the ladder leading back to the cargo hold. Ignoring the stowaway's squeak of pain as her head hit against the last rung, he walked calmly ahead, only slightly adjusting to her weight. Lights flickered on automatically above; Fett strode up to the lines of cages reserved for the 'merchandise' he often shuttled from one client to the next, punching in a passcode on a nearby console. The child realized where they were and began to squirm as the barred door swung open.

"No, please don't put me in there! I'll be good, I swear! I'm not trying to cause any trouble!!"

Fett was surprised at her speed as she flailed around in his grasp, nearly dropping her on the floor. She hammered her fists against his shins and kicked her legs several times before he dropped her into the cage and slammed the door closed behind her. The stowaway spun around and gripped a bar with one hand, the other clenched in a tight fist.

"Let me out of here! _Please_! I didn't mean to make you mad…"

For a moment they stared at each other. Fett was secretly taken aback at the fact she had made it aboard; all of the security systems he equipped _Slave I_ normally detected intruders before they came anywhere near it. The fact that this child had infiltrated his ship greatly disturbed him. There had to be a reason behind it; it could not have been by his fault. Of course, anger had also crept its way into awareness and flared every time he looked down at the dirty child. She shook the bars in an attempt to get his attention.

"Why won't you talk to me, Mr. Fett?!"

She gazed up at him through strands of reddish-blonde hair, which had fallen out in large pieces from her small ponytail. her knuckles white as she gripped the cage. He finally spoke.

"We are too far from Arbola for me to turn back; it would waste too much time to do so. You will remain here until I decide what to do with you. Is that understood?"

The child blinked up at him, her eyes shining oddly bright as she took in this information.

"But…this isn't fair!"

Fett leaned forward. The girl shrank back slightly, but still hung on to the bars.

"You should consider yourself lucky I didn't pull the trigger."

She frowned at him, backing away. Fett stalked away from the cage and she gazed after him in silent aggravation. Once back to the cock pit, he slid into the pilot's seat, seething. Punching a few buttons on the control panel, Fett watched as several schematics and words flashed over the smooth surface of the viewport. The computer beeped after scanning for any breach in the security systems and to his irritation, nothing revealed how the stowaway had come aboard. Fett had never once dealt with this particular problem.

And now a child stood in the one of the cells in _Slave I_'s cargo hold.

Boba Fett leaned forward, resting his chin thoughtfully on his fist as he watched the stars streak past the viewport in white blurs. It was going to be an interesting couple of days.


	2. Black Book

**Author's note: I know this is kind of a short chapter. Don't feel cheated, haha. But the next one will be longer! Thanks to those who have read and reviewed put the story on alert. ;D It means a lot!! Please leave comments. I've never written Fett before, and I hope I'm doing it right. Haha. **

The camera feed flashed dull colors across the cockpit as the bounty hunter thoughtfully observed the cages in the cargo hold. His visitor had slept in the corner of her prison, using the satchel she carried as a pillow. She was now awake, a tiny blurry form in the camera's grainy display. Her skin appeared a pale orange from the glow of the service lights in the hold.

Boba Fett flicked off the live feed and pushed himself from the pilot's chair to begin his decent to the holds, leaving _Slave I_ on its set course. He gathered up a small canister from the ship's mess area and trudged down a narrow ladder at the end of the corridor. The lights flickered on in the holds once more and he heard a small yelp soon after.

Fett approached the cell containing the stowaway, briefly watching as she rubbed her eyes roughly with her fists. He noticed there was a strange stuffed toy sitting in her lap covered in dark blue "fur." The girl turned fully to face him, still sitting cross-legged. Fett set the canister on the floor and pushed it through the slot at the bottom of the cage door with his boot.

"What's that?" she asked sleepily as the plastic bumped against her ankle.

"Food."

She looked up at him uncertainly. After receiving no reply, she let out a small sigh before grasping the canister and cracking it open. Fett had expected the following expression of disgust.

"This isn't food," she informed him, picking up a dark square in her fingers.

"It serves as a replacement, containing all the necessary vitamins and proteins needed to remain in good health."

The girl stared back up at him. "Oh…"

She took a hesitant bite, grimacing. Sticking out her tongue, she fixed him with a slight frown. He stared back at her; she forced herself to eat the rest, tucking her stuffed animal tighter under her arm. Shuddering from the taste, the child grasped a bar and pulled herself to her feet.

"Where are we going?"

"The Moon of Caza, if you must know," Fett replied, watching as she tossed the canister back and forth between her palms.

He almost found it peculiar that she hadn't shrank away from him; most prisoners he ended up speaking to were almost always frightened by him, pressing themselves as far back into the cell as possible. But this girl stood as close as she could- her eyes scanned him repeatedly as she spoke.

"What about me? Am I coming too?"

"I haven't decided yet."

Silence fell between them once again. Fett turned to leave, but the canister came sliding back from the cell and hit him lightly in the heel. He looked over his shoulder at the cage and his prisoner smiled at him.

"I'm still hungry."

Fett breathed something like a sigh, picking up the little box from the floor. The girl's smile faded into a frown as he started to walk away. She ran to the other side of the cell.

"Mr. Fett!"

He looked back at her.

"…I wanted to say I was sorry," she told him, "I really didn't mean to make you mad. I wanted to tell you my name-"

"You can keep your name to yourself, girl," he said.

Her frown deepened. "I'm Tinari, Mr. Fett- not '_girl_.'"

He folded his arms over his chest and leaned his shoulder against the wall, surprised to find himself more amused than annoyed. She was certainly stubborn, perhaps even a bit fearless, judging from to the way she spoke to him. Her eyes were still fixed on him and he watched as she moved to say something.

"…I need your help."

Fett gave a slight shake of his head. "You are in no position to ask for that."

Tinari's hostile tone disappeared; she leaned forward against the bars, pressing her cheeks against them as she spoke.

"But I have to get some place- I was hoping you would be headed there…I recognized your ship…"

"You are a stowaway," Fett told her in a flat voice, "and a child. I don't perform favors for either. As soon as you stepped on to this ship-_howeve_r you stepped on to this ship- you lost the right to negotiate."

She gaped at him again, this time in mounting disbelief, as though the consequences of what she had done had finally dawned on her. Fett straightened up, turning to leave. Her voice stopped him once again.

"They were right about you- you must be a droid!"

The statement hung in the air for what felt like several minutes as the bounty hunter slowly turned to fix his visored gaze upon the girl. When he finally spoke, she gave a small start.

"That would be a lie."

"You're not even…half a droid?" she asked him, a slight trace of confusion to her words.

Fett was growing impatient. "No."

"Well…I wasn't sure," Tinari admitted with a slight shrug, "That's just one of the rumors I've heard about you. It would make sense. But if you aren't a droid…then…did you _really_ have surgery so you can't feel any emotions?"

Her eyes widened at the possibility. Fett smirked ever so slightly beneath his helmet. The girl was curious now, rather than angry with him.

"I'll bet you can't even cry!"

"I can get irritated," Fett answered coldly, unfolding his arms. "And I think you are irritating me now."

Tinari whined slightly once she realized he was leaving, her imminent smile fading. Fett turned on his heel and began walking back down the corridor, ignoring her now worried expression.

"Hey, wait!"

The cargo hold was once again doused in darkness. The thud of boots faded away as Fett climbed the service ladder back up into the ship. The hatchway closed with a foreboding slam and the stowaway was left alone once again.

*******

The Moon of Caza was now closer, though it would still take quite awhile to arrive. Stars blurred past the viewport as Boba Fett sat leaned back in the pilot's seat, deep in thought. It was becoming increasingly difficult to attempt to find an explanation for the appearance of his 'visitor.' He was almost beginning to think it was by sheer luck she'd made it inside in the first place. Remembering that she'd said she'd been hiding, he wondered why she would choose his ship out of all the others to climb aboard…

A sudden blinking amber light brought him from his thoughts. Fett stretched his finger over to the far corner of the control panel to turn on the camera feed in the cargo hold. He leaned forward to inspect the screen closely. The feed flickered and the image distorted slightly, but the bars of the cages shone dully in the darkness.

And there was no prisoner in cell number three.

Fett leapt from his seat and hustled through the narrow corridor leading back to the holds. He gripped his blaster pistol as he ran and headed for the ladder leading downward. He slid down the sides and strode up to the blast door, which automatically opened as he approached.

The cell was indeed empty, though the girl had left her belongings inside. Fett swept his gaze around the holds, already on the move before the lights could snap on fully. He found a few crates had been rifled through and several storage lockers had been opened, causing a fresh wave of consternation to course through his veins.

A strange glow was coming from the corner of the room and Boba Fett curled the fingers of his free hand into a fist as he approached it. He could see the top of the girl's head and picked up his pace. She was sitting cross-legged leaning against the wall, her attention focused on something she'd set on the floor. The glow that illuminated her face came from a small screen embedded in the object, which resembled a bulky black book. A line of words had appeared across the screen:

'_There are no friends or enemies, only allies and adversaries._'

Fett recognized it all too well. He lunged forward and snatched up the collar of the child's tunic, pulling her toward him. She shrieked.

"Stand up," Fett ordered.

"I-I…I wasn't-"

The bounty hunter grabbed a fistful of her hair. "I said, 'stand up'!"

Tinari scrambled to her feet, Fett still holding tight to her. He inspected the destruction critically, noticing another familiar object on the floor. His fingers tensed threateningly and the girl squealed at the pain in her scalp. One of the anti-security blades he kept in the shin pockets of his uniform was lying beside the book, no doubt the tool in which she'd used to rifle through all of his belongings.

"What…were…you…_Doing_?" Fett demanded, giving her a little shake.

Tinari could see her reflection in the black visor; he held her so fiercely she was afraid to breathe, knowing he could quickly decide to grab her by the throat instead. Trying to ignore the roaring of her heart, she said,

"I was looking for more food-"

His fingers pulled at her hair again and she winced, stopping her sentence short. Her eyes widened in the helmet's view. She took in a slight breath as Fett leaned in close. Tinari could have touched the tip of his chin if she wanted to.

"I have been tolerant up until this point. But you've gone too far this time."

Tinari could feel the anger in his words rather than hear it. Briefly, she stole a glance over at the booking lying open on the ground, the words still readable across the screen.

"I didn't know it was so important," she told him, "I'm sorry! I just wondered what it was…"

She gasped as Fett straightened up, dragging her along with him. He grasped her collar again and pulled. Tinari coughed, stumbling after him. She saw the opened cell ahead and braced herself as the bounty hunter threw her into the confines of the bars. Her knees took the brunt of the fall and she grimaced at the slight pain in her stomach. The floor was cold against her palms; she heard him slam the cage door closed behind her and struggled to her feet to face him, brushing the hair from her eyes.

"Boba Fett…"

"If you act this way again," he warned her in a terrifyingly calm voice, "If I find that you've disrupted me with anything else, you will be vaporized."

Tinari shook her head in desperation.

"You don't understand!"

Fett raised the blaster in his hand and pointed the barrel at her through the bars. She froze.

"Do I make myself clear?" Fett asked.

Tinari nodded rapidly. "Y-yes!"

She watched in grim silence as he holstered his pistol, turning to walk back to where the book still lay open on the floor along with his anti-security blade. He replaced the blade in its rightful pocket and picked up the book in his palm, shutting it with a small clap. The dull blue glow vanished. Tinari gazed at him with worried tears in her eyes as he marched past her and soon disappeared behind the cargo hold door.

Fett clambered from the ladder back up into the main area of _Slave I_, growling to himself. He should have known better than to underestimate the girl, however unlikely this event had previously appeared to him. Before settling back into the pilot's seat, Fett looked down at the book in his hands.

"What a little thief," he mused, running his fingers over the leather cover.

It had been long time since he'd needed to consult the book, though at the moment it seemed a good a time as any have a look. With a small click, the cover opened; the screen inside flickered on and the soft blue glow illuminated the Mandalorian helmet. To Fett's surprise, a line of words appeared, one he had never read before.

'_The worse things are, the calmer you need to be_.'

He stared at the shimmering letters for a few seconds, feeling a slight smile curl his lips. The book always told you what you needed to know, after all. Fett placed it in one of the storage compartments close to the pilot's chair, pondering the message it had given him.

His father's words were never to be ignored.


	3. Hunted

**Author's note: My favorite chapter so far. ;) Hope you all enjoy. I'm on a roll with posting lately…haha. Thanks again to all my readers! Much appreciated. :D **

Her eyes fluttered open and almost instantly she was afraid. It was very dark and cold; industrial and unfamiliar. There was a strange, sterile smell to the air. Tinari scrambled to a sitting position, hearing her quickened breaths echo slightly in the empty space. If she had been sleeping, she was no longer tired.

"Momma?!"

Her cry went unanswered and she turned around, whimpering. Dull orange light was cast around the room; once her eyes settled on the silver-grey steel of the surrounding bares, her memory came rushing back.

She was aboard _Slave I_, in a cage reserved for the 'merchandise' of Boba Fett, the most feared bounty hunter in the entire galaxy.

Tinari gave a slight shiver and clutched her favorite stuffed animal tight in her arms. She buried her face in the soft fur and rocked back and forth slightly, as if to bring the both of them comfort. Her stomach rumbled with hunger and she winced, knowing that strange square Fett had given her wasn't enough. Gripping one of the animal's floppy ears, Tinari sighed and looked around the confines of her prison. She'd only used the anti-security blade to open the lock of her cell, plus a few of the storage lockers; Fett had already stopped by while she'd slept to equip the cage with yet another security device. The confirmation light pulsed beacon-like in the darkness. Tinari made a face and looked lovingly at her animal, smoothing down the white fur of its spots.

"It'll take awhile to make friends, I guess," she concluded, "But…Boba Fett will help us…eventually."

Tinari hugged the animal and drew her knees up close to her chest. She understood how dangerous someone like the bounty hunter was, but she also knew she'd be safer around him than anyone else she could think of. No one would dare attempt harm on Boba Fett.

"He might understand," Tinari thought aloud, "Maybe. If he'd listen…"

She remained in pensive silence until she felt the weight strangely shift beneath her. Confused, she scrambled to her feet, clenching one of the freezing bars in her hand. Machinery groaned threateningly; hissing noises came from the wires and coils that snaked through the ship behind panels of durasteel. A strange whirring came to her ears and Tinari frowned at the noise, gripping her animal close. Suddenly, the entire ship shuddered violently. She was thrown forward hard into the opposite end of the cage, hitting her shoulder against the wall. Once she righted herself, massaging away the pain, the whirring ceased and all was normal once again.

Slight hissing noises could still be heard as Tinari sank back to a sitting position, wrapping her arms about her knees. She faced away from the cargo hold, staring thoughtfully at the wall in front of her, biting her bottom lip. Scowling at the surrounding ship, she muttered,

"I miss home…"

As if to coincide with her bitter thoughts, _Slave I _lurched again, though not as roughly as before. Tinari scooted back on her hands, grasping one of the bars again as she felt the gravity suddenly shifting around her. It was like riding in a giant elevator turned on its side; her stomach somersaulted and she cried out as the walls vibrated. A deep noise boomed as the ship was wracked with a powerful tremor. Tinari felt as if being pulled backward, her shoes slipping along the floor. She stumbled and fell on her side. Seizing her animal in her arms, she squeezed her eyes shut as _Slave I_ gave one final, rattling quake, and all was silent once again.

Tinari had no idea what had happened, but she was glad it was over. She curled into a ball and tried to remain calm. Oddly, she could sense the ship had begun to power down; the ambient noises were now gone and the silence pressed in deep on her ears. Lights suddenly snapped on and Tinari squeaked, closing her eyes as fast as she could. Spots danced across her vision as she heard the clapping of boots on the cold floor.

A shadow fell over her. Tinari knew he was standing right behind her, waiting. She half-hoped he was no longer angry with her, though she was sure his disposition hadn't changed. Even though he told her he wasn't a droid, she still believed he was. He always sounded the same; there was no emotion to his words and, perhaps worst of all, she couldn't see his eyes. She was sure a droid smart enough could lie, at any rate…

"Get up."

His words cut through the silence like a blade and Tinari jumped, her plan to pretend to be sleeping now ruined. She forced herself to sit up and turned around, her eyes fixed on his boots.

"We've docked at Caza," Boba Fett informed her, "And I will be leaving to pay for refueling and supplies."

Tinari had to look up at him, then. She frowned at him in thought, her eyes settling on the blaster rifle cradled in his hands.

"Am I going with you?"

"Yes."

"So…you aren't mad at me anymore?" Tinari asked, a note of hope to her voice.

"I'm just not taking any chances leaving you here alone," Fett countered.

The girl let out a tiny, sheepish smile. She looked into the T-visor where she hoped his eyes were, hugging her toy and rocking it side to side.

"Can I bring Snoo with me?"

Tinari breathed a heavy sigh once her query went unanswered. Boba Fett reached for the security devices on the cage, silently tapping in a few codes. Tinari carefully placed her satchel in the corner and gently dropped her beloved 'Snoo' on top. She decided he'd be safer on the ship, anyway…

A strange beep came to her ears and soon Fett had opened the cage, allowing her to step out. She looked around for a few moments, not knowing what else to do.

"I don't want any trouble," warned the bounty hunter, "Can you manage that?"

Tinari nodded wordlessly, tucking her hands behind her back. Fett turned to walk further through the room and she followed, surprised at how tall he was. He seemed to tower over her; her flyaway hair just brushed his elbow as she scurried after him. Boba Fett flipped a switch on the wall and the cargo doors suddenly opened with a hiss, rays of light bursting into view along the floor. Tinari squinted, holding up her arm to shield her eyes. A strong breeze rippled her clothes and pushed back her hair as she gazed upon the surface of the foreign world awaiting them at the end of the ramp.

She hesitated halfway down, curling her fingers into fists as Boba Fett walked on ahead of her. He sensed she had stopped and turned back around. The sunlight caught his armor fully and the wind snapped the cape out alongside him.

"I've never left Arbola," Tinari finally said, her voice carrying down to him, "I've never even traveled past my village…"

Boba Fett waited for her at the end of the ramp, slinging his rifle into place over his shoulder. For some reason, Tinari took it as a somewhat comforting gesture.

"Come, girl."

She recognized the tone of voice and nodded, swallowing the sudden lump in her throat.

"Okay," she barely whispered.

She walked the rest of the way down the incline, squinting in the sunlight. Secretly, she was appreciative of Fett's company, though he was obviously unwilling to have her around. _Slave I_ had landed on a circular landing pad at the top of a tall platform; Tinari could see several identical spaces ahead, spreading outward in strange 'webs' that reminded her of lily pads. Bright red landing lights stretched forward in a strip toward the horizon.

The sky suddenly darkened and the sun disappeared behind thick clouds as Tinari walked alongside Boba Fett, her eyes still scanning every detail of this world she had never been to. She frowned after noticing the area below the landing pads was obscured by dense fog.

"Is it dangerous here?" she asked, turning her head to look up at the bounty hunter.

"No more dangerous than any other place," was the reply.

Fett's voice was as unemotional as ever. Tinari didn't think she would ever find it reassuring. People were walking around them, strange menacing-looking people who cast them warning looks as they passed. She edged closer to Fett, who was leading her toward a tall building labeled 'Elevator' in both Basic and some other strange language. They pushed past a few more people and Tinari ducked behind Fett, her hands seizing fistfuls of his cape in order to keep from losing him.

He came to an abrupt halt and she practically crashed into him, hitting her nose on the scuffed metal of the jetpack attached to his armor.

"Let go," Fett told her.

Tinari nodded and quickly released the abrasive cloth. Fett continued walking toward the building and she fell into step beside him once again, rubbing her nose.

"Stay close. People will keep their distance."

"Alright…"

The windows in the elevator revealed nothing but more fog, and Tinari sighed in irritation, anxious to see what the world looked like around them. Her stomach lurched oddly and the elevator dinged; Tinari scurried along behind Boba Fett, still clinging to his cape. Her feet trudged through fine yellow sand as they finally set foot on the ground level of Caza. The fog had dissipated somewhat, though the sky appeared a dully grey and a few wisps of mist still lingered throughout the city. Everything seemed to be crammed beneath the landing pads, crowded with citizens and travelers alike.

Tinari gazed in wonder around them as they passed shops and small business, weaving in between the patrons buying fruit and vegetables from the open-air markets. A strong smell of spices wafted through the air, and vendors shouted for people to buy their product. Tinari smiled as they passed a stand selling several brilliantly colored birds, tweeting relentlessly from their cages. She would have stopped to admire them, but Boba Fett was continuing his journey through the market place, apparently uninterested in all the wonderful things she gazed upon. Tinari felt her stomach growl uncomfortably with the sudden smell of cooking.

"Can I have some real food, _please_?" she begged him.

She huffed after he failed to respond yet again, her eyes fixed longingly on a passing stand of attractive pink fruit. She'd never seen so many colors and heard so many different languages as they continued their trek beneath the landing pads. Fett turned and Tinari followed him inside a two-story building fashioned from wood. From what she could read, several signs proclaimed, 'pay here,' 'food and drink,' and 'discount.' The din of the market place was soon muffled as the door swung closed behind them.

Boba Fett grabbed her by the arm and steered her off into the corner of the room. Tinari made a face at rough movement.

"Stay _right_ here."

The bounty hunter pointed at her, as if to make doubly sure she was listening.

"It won't take long."

Tinari grabbed his finger. "You promise? I don't like being left alone."

Boba Fett tilted his head forward in a slight nod. Tinari squinted at him critically for a moment before releasing her grip on his gloved finger. He straightened up and turned to walk the rest of the way through the room, ignoring the stares from several people sitting at tables scattered around them. Tinari sighed and leaned against the wall, her hands behind her back, watching as Fett stepped up to a counter to wait in line behind a few others.

Most of the tables were occupied by weary travelers. They looked like delivery men or long distance pilots, judging from their haggard appearance and the dark circles under their eyes. Some kind of drink was clenched in their hands as they talked amongst themselves.

Tinari's stomach gave another unpleasant growl and she grimaced, wrapping her arms around herself as if to quell the spasms. She observed the place once more, bouncing around impatiently on her heels. It was then she smelled something cooking. Her stomach twisted again and she searched for the source of the smell, realizing it was coming from a doorway off to her right, where a staircase led up to a restaurant on the second floor. She grinned at the prospect of potential waiting for her atop those stairs…

Glancing over at Fett, she saw he was conversing with a man behind the counter. If she hurried, she could have gone to inspect the restaurant and come back before he was finished. And if not, he wouldn't have far to look for her. Tinari pushed herself from the wall and quietly climbed the stairs, ready to discover whatever was making that delicious smell.

Boba Fett had transferred the last few credits that would pay for the refueling of his ship and any supplies or repairs he may need. All that remained was finding a place for the girl here on Caza. There were better places he could have left her. But anyplace he was better than on his ship. Before he could ready himself to leave, he became aware of a screen mounted on the far wall to the left of the counter. A woman was adjusting the message displayed across it, shaking her head sadly.

"Such a shame," she sighed to the clerk, "They've raised it again-from 100 to 150 this time. The Empire better have a good reason to want that much for such a sweet thing…"

The image flickered as the woman worked. Boba Fett watched in interest, knowing it was advertizing a bounty. Once the woman had finished, he could read the screen fully. Fett was actually taken aback.

It was the girl.

Her smile was wide, her hair was fixed nicely and her clothes were clean but there was no mistaking it- that was his stowaway. '_Wanted for crimes against the Empire. Tinari Luna, aged nine years. 150,000 credits-alive._'

Boba Fett quickly turned on his heel, only to find the corner he'd left her was now empty.

Tinari could hardly keep her mouth from watering as the overpowering scent of food filled her nostrils. The restaurant was warm and inviting, lit by hanging overhead lights and crowded with pilots and travelers. Several wide arched windows brought natural light in from the outside; wisps of fog frosted the tops of each one. Avoiding waitresses and weaving in between tables, Tinari scurried to where the smell was strongest, hearing the sizzling of something delicious on a hot stove. She pushed her way into the kitchen area, able to remain undetected due to her size. Her eyes caught sight of a fresh basket of fried food and she lunged for it, giggling as she crammed the morsels into her mouth.

It was quite possibly the best thing she'd ever tasted; a thin trail of juice ran down the corner of her mouth as she chewed. Her stomach pains now subsiding, she hurried from the kitchen and back into the restaurant, licking her fingers. A few pieces were still clenched in her other hand. Someone suddenly bumped into her. She looked up, prepared to apologize.

Instead, Tinari screamed.

Fett turned sharply, hearing the girl's piercing cry from above. The whole room had gone silent at the sound; roughly a few seconds passed before the commotion started. Thuds sounded from the room upstairs as people began to run. Fett unslung the rifle from his shoulder, heading for the stairway. A young woman and her son came pushing past him, frightened looks across their faces. He raced onward, his boots thumping loudly on the boards. Once to the top of the stairs, rifle held at the ready, Fett's helmeted gaze surveyed the chaos that now surrounded him. Several patrons were scrambling to leave; tables and chairs were knocked over and silverware littered the floor, along with whatever food had been served. Fett heard Tinari scream again and watched as an all-too-familiar figure swiped aside the last table to grab her.

"Bossk!"

With a guttural growl, the Trandoshan bounty hunter turned to face him, fangs bared in a menacing sneer. Struggling in his vice-like grip was the sobbing Tinari. She kicked her legs, pounding the scaled arms of her captor with all her strength.

"She's _my_ bounty, Bossk," Boba Fett told him evenly, "Let her go."

People ran past them in blurs, desperate to keep out of their way. Tinari whimpered, grimacing as the Trandoshan's claws dug into her to prevent her from moving. Fett watched as she gazed at him pleadingly, tears shining brightly on her cheeks. His fingers flexed tighter over the rifle's grip as Bossk's yellow reptilian eyes settled on him hatefully.

"Or have you forgotten the Guild's guidelines?" Boba Fett continued, "I'd wonder what your father would say."

Bossk's eyes narrowed to slits and he snarled threateningly; Fett maintained his composure as always, knowing it didn't take much to set off a hair-trigger temper. A Trandoshan was angry by nature. Bossk released Tinari from his claws, promptly dropping her on the floor. She yelped in pain and curled into a ball, her arms above her head.

"Don't you talk about rules, Fett. You and I both know you want to part of the Guild." Bossk slowly drew the large blaster pistol from the holster at his side and leveled it. "I'm taking this brat and you'll just have to deal with the fact that for once someone beat you to the prize."

Fett noticed Tinari had quietly edged away from the Trandoshan, trembling all the while. She was eyeing another part of the restaurant, eager for a place to hide.

"'No hunter shall interfere with another's hunt.' That is part of the Creed," Fett reminded him, his voice still a steady calm.

Bossk's eyes visibly darkened and he stood up straighter, framing himself in one of the windows lining the back wall. Fett remained unfazed, even with the blaster pointed unwavering at his chest.

"Shut up!" Bossk snapped, "I told you that I'm taking this kid and nothing you say is going to stop me."

"I'm sure you think so."

Fett had kept his gaze on Tinari, though the T-visor faced the angered Trandoshan. He watched as Tinari raised herself to a sitting position, her eyes bouncing from one bounty hunter to the other.

"You're not getting out of this one, Fett," Bossk spat.

He made no reply, instead adjusting the position of his feet against the floorboards. Tinari suddenly leapt to her feet, sprinting for the other side of the restaurant. Bossk tore his eyes from his rival and made a move to grab the girl.

Boba Fett broke into a sprint and threw himself forward, slamming headlong into Bossk. His shoulder took the brunt of the impact; Bossk snarled as they flew through the air. Fett heard Tinari's high-pitched scream as all three of them crashed through one of the windows in a tangle of limbs and battle gear.

For a moment, it was silent as they fell, the wind rushing past them. Fett braced himself for the jarring impact as they finally smashed into the sand outside, glass raining down after them. Bossk growled viciously, tearing at the Mandalorian armor as he struggled to right himself. Fett heard the claws scrape against the side of his helmet as he rolled away. He saw Tinari a few feet in front of him, shrieking something he couldn't comprehend. He reached for his rifle only to grab air, realizing he'd lost it in the fall. Fett spun on his heels to run up Tinari. Her face was streaked with blood as she pointed frantically behind them at Bossk, who was now on his feet. Fett grabbed her and shoved her forward.

"Run!!"

She didn't need telling twice, turning to sprint through the gathering crowd of people. Fett didn't have time to make sure she was alright; Bossk had swung out at him with his arm, cuffing him in the side of the helmet. Fett stumbled back a few paces, but managed to block the second blow with his forearm, throwing a punch into the Trandoshan's gut. Bossk hissed, doubling over; Fett drove a knee into his chest to bring him back to the ground. The rival bounty hunter snarled, struggling to regain his footing. Boba Fett drew his blaster pistol; Bossk rolled over on to his back, revealing his own rifle.

They both fired at the same time.

The bolt from Bossk's rifle hit its mark, grazing Fett on the bicep and burning a hole through the tough fabric of his battle suit. Fett's shot missed, though barely an inch from Bossk's head. Seeing his opponent had been taken off guard, Bossk lashed out with his leg, striking him in the back of the heel. Knees buckled, and Boba Fett fell hard to the ground, the wind gasping painfully from his lungs. The blaster was jerked from his hand and skidded away through the sand.

Bossk loomed over him as he fought to get the air back into his lungs. His rifle was raised, a jagged, ugly smile stretching across his face. The Trandoshan bounty hunter quickly crushed Fett's right arm under his foot to prevent him from reaching for his fallen weapons.

"Now this might just be worth the delay," Bossk sneered.

His clawed finger tightened over the trigger; Fett didn't move. With a sudden rush of air, the rocket darts in the knee pads were activated. Bossk howled as four needle-like barbs shot into the flesh of his wrist and arm. Fett rolled to his feet, having gained the distraction he needed. Bossk had already recovered, now angered even more. He snatched the bounty hunter tightly by the arm; Fett leaned into his punch in order to give himself more force. Bossk's head snapped to the right from the blow and he staggered away, releasing Fett's arm. He followed through with another punch, then another. Shifting his weight to one foot, Boba Fett kicked out with the other, driving his boot deep into his gut. The force sent Bossk flying through the shop's window in and explosion of glass.

Boba Fett calmly stood his ground and raised his left arm. A bright jet of yellow-orange flame spiraled from the gauntlet on his wrist; around him, citizens screamed louder. He swept the flames into and across the façade of the store window before gathering up his weapons from the sand and breaking into a run the way Tinari had gone.

More people had pressed around him to avoid the flames flickering toward the sky and he shoved his way through the crowd as best he could, scanning for the girl. Fett spotted her up ahead, half-running, half-stumbling her way through the streets in a panic. The screams reached a crescendo behind them; Fett ran faster, nearly caught up.

"Tinari!"

She whirled around sharply and he could see that blood had now covered her cheeks and forehead, staining her clothes. Her expression lifted into one of relief and she skidded to a halt, running to meet him.

"Grab on to me!" he yelled.

As soon as her arms wrapped around his, the jetpack roared. Tinari shrieked as they left the ground, rocketing through the fog that blanketed the Moon of Caza so thickly. She squeezed his forearm as tight as she could, holding on to him for dear life. For a moment, Tinari was in silent awe of what she was seeing, watching in disbelief as her feet dangled in the air beside Boba Fett's combat boots. The fog thickened beneath them and she could no longer see the ground. Her hair caught the wind and blew all around her, biting at her skin as they ascended.

The ride was over almost as soon as it had started. Boba Fett cut the power to the jetpack's thrusters and they fell with a heavy thud on to one of the landing pads towering above the market place. Tinari stumbled as he set her down on the walkway, hardly able to keep on her feet as he hauled her along by the arm. She could see the outline of _Slave I _ahead and forced herself to run faster. Fett was hitting a few buttons on the other wrist gauntlet; Tinari watched as the blast door at the end of the ramp slid open, inviting them inside. They were nearly there; Fett shoved her ahead of him.

"Get on the ship--!"

A ruby-red blaster bolt shot across her vision. It struck Fett squarely in the chest, knocking him from his feet. Tinari screamed, watching in horror as the bounty hunter slid away from her, a large, jagged hole smoking in the armor directly over his heart.


	4. Mandalorian Armor

**Author's note: It's not too much, but hopefully you'll all forgive me for that nasty cliffhanger. ;D Enjoy!**

"Boba Fett!!" Tinari shrieked.

She started toward his lifeless form, but something grasped her arm and yanked her backward. She struggled viciously as her feet left the ground, watching helplessly as Fett remained motionless before her. Tinari growled and thrashed, kicking her legs as hard as she could, but the Trandoshan's grip was too tight. Tears began rolling down her cheeks and mixed with the trails of blood on her face. Bossk fixed her with and ugly, horrifying smile, presenting his rifle to her. The barrel was still smoking.

"You are _mine_ now," he sneered.

Tinari recoiled in disgust at the stench of his rancid breath, closing her eyes at the sight of the razor sharp fangs. She screamed for help, her voice echoing around them and fading into the fog. Bossk threw her up in the air and caught her again by the back of her tunic to get a better grip. He turned to walk back the way he'd come, propping the barrel of his weapon against his shoulder. Hardly reacting to the struggling child clenched in his claws, he said,

"You're indeed a unique bounty, girl. After all, you'll be the first I've ever stolen from the 'great' Boba Fett."

Tinari glowered as Bossk growled something that sounded like laughter. Her heart was pounding so fast against her ribs she was almost dizzy. But the hatred she felt for this creature was more than enough to keep her from succumbing to fear.

"You _killed_ him!!" she screeched, "You killed Boba Fett!!"

Tinari lashed out at him, managing to hit the Trandoshan well enough in the arms and chest for him to snarl at her. Bossk gripped her tighter in his grasp and she felt her collar tightening over her throat. It didn't stop her from glaring at him.

"Keep it up and you'll be joining him," he hissed, "Credits or not."

Tinari's eyes suddenly widened. At the same time, an emotionless voice broke into Bossk's thoughts.

"I don't think so."

The bounty hunter barely had time to look into the visor of Boba Fett's helmet before a long vibroblade slashed into his arm. He roared at the pain, releasing Tinari from his grip once again. She crumpled to the ground, watching in horror as Bossk swung his other arm to strike Fett. Dark blood spattered across the landing pad in a trail. Tinari scrambled away as fast she could, unable to believe what she was seeing. She cried out in alarm as Boba Fett grappled with Bossk, the bloodied vibroblade clattering from his hand to the gratings below. The latter was now severely wounded; Tinari could see a large gash had been torn in his flesh, so deep it revealed bone.

She watched, transfixed, as the bounty hunters brawled. Bossk's fangs were bared as his claws lunged for Fett's throat. Tinari shouted to him, snatching fistfuls of her hair. Fett tackled Bossk once again and they fell to the ground, rolling swiftly to the edge of the platform. Bossk snarled in both pain and fury as he fell over the lip of the pad. Tinari gave a sharp gasp once she saw Boba Fett disappear over the side as well. She leapt to her feet and sprinted to where they had gone.

Fett had anticipated the fall, his fingers catching the edge of the platform just in time. Hot pain coursed through his torso and up the length of his arms. Bossk had fallen with a snarl into the mist below, cursing Fett's name in a furious roar. He looked up after his enemy had vanished, grasping the edge of the landing pad tighter in his fingers.

"Are you okay?!"

As Fett lunged forward over the platform, kicking his legs, Tinari ran to his side. Her fingers seized him under the arm and she pulled as hard as she could. He couldn't help grunting in pain at the increased pressure on his wounded chest, slinging his leg up onto the pad.

"What happened to that…that _thing_?" Tinari asked him in a trembling voice.

Boba Fett rose to his feet, pushing the bloodied girl along with him.

"Get onboard," he told her.

She fixed him with one last worried look before running toward _Slave I_ and up into the cargo hold. Fett followed close behind, gathering up his vibroblade from the ground. Once back inside the safe haven of his ship, he picked up his pace, hitting the switch to shut the exit with his elbow. Pushing Tinari down on to the small bench jutting from the wall, Fett said,

"Sit. Don't move until we've broken atmosphere."

She nodded grimly, gripping the edges of the bench tightly in her grasp. Boba Fett climbed the ladder leading upward, heading for the cockpit. He fell into the pilot's seat and began flipping switches. The control panel lit up and the ship gave a shudder as _Slave I _came to life. Fett watched as the viewport was clouded with mist before finally clearing, revealing a blinding blue sky as the ship tilted to its normal flight position. With one push of the thruster engine controls, they were soon slicing through the atmosphere to leave the Moon of Caza behind.

It was only after reaching the quiet of space and seeing the endless vista of stars did Boba Fett feel any sort of fatigue. His muscles slowly relaxed and he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees, trying to ignore the stabs of pain in his chest. He set _Slave I_ on autopilot and turned to head for the cargo hold. He reached into the nearby storage space, collecting several different medical items from the storage space and setting them out in front of him.

The pain in his torso was now too great to ignore; tending to the child would have to wait. Fett reached for the straps that held his chest armor in place; the jetpack came first, still hot to the touch after its recent use. He set it on the floor for the time being, moving to work at the straps on the other side. The chest plate suddenly came loose around him and he winced as some of the pressure was relieved from over his wound. Turning slightly, he reached under his helmet and pulled it free from his head. He set it aside and shrugged out of the ruined torso armor, pulling it above him. It clattered to the floor beside the jetpack, and he reached for the medical items to begin tending to the large black burn that had formed over his heart.

Tinari had moved from her place on the bench and dared to climb the ladder leading upward. She pushed herself up on the second-to-last rung, able to see into the cockpit. Her eyes widened as they settled on the figure of Boba Fett, who had taken off his chest plate. The blaster shot had burnt a deep hole into the thick material. Tinari was more focused on the fact Fett had also taken off his helmet in order to remove the pieces.

Though his back was to her, she could see that he was most definitely not a droid. Short jet-black hair covered his head; and in the split second she could see the unmasked form, Fett had slipped the helmet back on. Tinari ducked back down the ladder, knowing he was coming. She rushed over to the bench and sat down on it, hugging her beloved stuffed animal named Snoo. Fett came into view a few seconds later, carrying a small collection of medical items in the crook of his arm.

"Are we safe now?" Tinari asked him.

"For the moment," was the reply.

He knelt in front of her, inwardly grimacing at the drying blood on her face. It was quite possible this damage would affect the amount she was worth. Fett opened one of the packets containing a strip of gauze and set the rest of the items on the bench beside the girl. He reached up, lifting the hair from her forehead to clean the blood from her face. She winced, turning away. Fett could see the severity of the gashes; they all went diagonally down her face, two of them deeper than the rest. He put the cloth aside and grabbed for a small canister filled with a bluish- white substance that sparkled slightly as it moved. Tinari watched as he shook it up, sniffing away tears from the pain. She looked at the canister wearily. Reading the expression on her face, Fett explained,

"Bacta, for your wounds."

He gripped the ends of his gloves and pulled them off, tucking them into his belt. Tinari wrinkled her nose at the substance, though it pained her to do so.

"Will it hurt?"

"Not very much."

Fett dipped two of his fingers into the Bacta as he spoke. Tinari appeared most unwilling to feel anymore pain than she already did. The bounty hunter held up his hand, the other moving to again brush the bangs from her forehead.

"Hold still," he advised her.

Tinari squeezed her eyes shut as he dabbed the gel-like substance over her wounds. She whined, gnashing her teeth, but Fett continued his work.

"It stings!!"

Tinari felt tears burn behind her eyes as the Bacta covered each of the gashes on her face.

"Done," came Fett's voice.

Tinari opened her eyes and scowled, feeling each of the slashes throb with pain. The bounty hunter had taken one of her arms to inspect the bruises from Bossk's claws and covered them with more Bacta. Fett noticed movement and grasped Tinari's wrist.

"Don't touch it. Let it work in the wounds- it's the only way they'll heal."

She nodded begrudgingly as he applied more of the sticky substance over a few abrasions on her upper arm and elbow. Fett noticed the girl was trembling slightly as he reassembled the Bacta canister and began to wrap a few gauze strips around her arm.

"I thought for a minute you were dead," she told him in a quiet voice.

"There's a reason why Mandalorian armor is the best," Fett replied, ripping a strand of gauze from her bandage.

A strange volley of noises sounded from the cockpit, and Tinari gave a start. Fett hurriedly finished dressing the wound on her arm and shot to his feet, pulling on his gloves. He grabbed the girl by her arm and led her out of the cargo hold toward the ladder. The warnings were still beeping as he lifted her from the floor and set her on the rungs above him.

Tinari climbed the rest of the way into the cockpit, carefully stepping around the ruined armor plate in the corner. Her gaze focused on the viewport ahead and she gasped softly, running forward. Fett followed, slumping into the pilot's seat to silence the bleeping alarms.

"I've never seen so many stars…" Tinari breathed, her eyes wide.

Boba Fett snatched a handful of her tunic and pulled her away from the viewport, shoving her into a smaller replica of the pilot's chair beside him. Tinari frowned as he pulled two straps from the sides and clipped them securely over her, forming an 'X' over her chest. Just as he finished, the control panel lit up and several alarms beeped shrilly once again. Fett fell back into his chair and grasped the controls. Tinari pulled uncomfortably at the belts, asking,

"What's wrong?"

The viewport suddenly flashed with red light; _Slave I_ shook violently from side to side. Tinari cried out in alarm, spots dancing across her vision. Boba Fett retained his usual calm, pulling the ship into a hard left. The stars blurred and more laser cannon shots lit up outside.

"It's the monster, isn't it?!" Tinari cried, "I thought he was dead!!"

"Trandoshans are hard to kill," Fett said.

He pulled back on the controls and the ship tilted up; Fett palmed the thruster engines and _Slave I _lurched ahead, just avoiding the torrent of bolts sent streaming through the void of space below them. Tinari felt the safety belts dig into her chest and her head snapped forward as _Slave I _burst into high speed. Her stomach lurched horribly as Fett twisted the ship into a tight right turn; Tinari squeezed her eyes shut to keep from watching the stars blur and spin through the viewport. Once they were flying straight again, she gasped,

"Go into hyperspace or something!"

Boba Fett was busy flicking switches, the viewscreens and orange-lit datapads reflecting oddly across his helmet. _Slave I_ dipped into a steady dive, avoiding further attack. Tinari felt as if her stomach had fallen past her knees. Her fingers dug into the arm rests and she jumped at the sound of bolts thudding into one of the wings. Fett quickly strapped his own harness over his shoulders and curled his fingers around the thruster engine controls.

"Brace yourself."

With red-hot laser bolts flashing all around them, _Slave I_ burst into action. Tinari's stomach somersaulted as the ship reeled from one direction to the next, the g-forces pushing on her so greatly her chest hurt. Boba Fett's gaze was fixed unflinchingly on the rear scanner. Tinari watched as a strange shape played across the display screen. She read the readout and shook her head.

"He's gaining on us!"

Tinari screamed as the ship plummeted into another dive to avoid more shots. The world suddenly tilted violently and she shrieked again as _Slave I_ tipped on to its head. The safety belts caught and held them both as they raced along, still upside down. A few blasts rocked the back end of the ship and the lights in the cockpit flickered rapidly.

"Fly the right way!" Tinari begged Fett, furiously brushing the hair from her eyes, "Please!!"

He ignored her as always, bringing his fist down on a weapons launching device. Slave I gave a slight shudder as the explosive was released; Fett tilted the ship right side up, heading in a sharp angle higher above the opposing starfighter. Tinari watched as a bright flash engulfed the view in the rear scanner; the following explosion caught the pursing _Hound's Tooth_ fully in its radius.

"That was a seismic charge!" Tinari exclaimed, fixing the bounty hunter with an incredulous look, "They're illegal in several systems- and you have one!"

Boba Fett was intently studying the rear scanner, keeping _Slave I_ at full speed. Tinari gazed with wide eyes as the last few blue-tinted particles from the bomb floated gently past the viewport. She leaned forward in her seat, attempting to read the screens. Her heart was still pounding against her chest, but she did feel some degree of relief.

"I think we got him!" she said with a grin.

Fett continued to flick a few switches, his fingers dancing over the control panel.

"Don't be too sure."

Tinari frowned. "But…that was a seismic charge."

Fett looked down at her, finally tearing his gaze from the computer screens.

"As I said, it takes a lot to kill a Trandoshan."

Tinari whined slightly, knowing that meant they were not safe- not yet. She leaned back and tensed as Fett pulled back a nearby gear. The stars suddenly elongated through the port and _Slave I _shot into hyperspace.


	5. Tinari's Story

Boba Fett knew the _Hound's Tooth _was following them, though he made no further attempt to destroy it- at least not yet. _Slave I _had taken on some damage, but nothing life-threatening. If Bossk decided to launch right into attack as soon as they came out of hyperspace, that would be his mistake- the arsenal Fett had equipped the _Firespray-31-class_ ship had quite a few deadly surprises.

The data readout told him more important systems like fuel and life support were still functioning as well as they always did. The ship was listing slightly to the left, however, due to the fact the wing had taken a few direct hits.

The girl-or merchandise, as he now considered her- had relaxed considerably, though she was still wide-eyed and pale. Her wounds glistened red in the light but had stopped bleeding.

"I don't feel good," she said.

Boba Fett glanced over at her once again, but quickly turned back to the controls.

"I think I'm gonna be sick…"

He reached into one of the storage compartments built into the right wall and rifled through it with one hand. Tinari watched him, a pained, worried look to her face. Fett opened a container and pressed a small blue pill into her hand.

"Take it. The nausea will pass."

Tinari nodded and obediently ate the pill, swallowing it with some difficulty. She leaned back in her seat and sighed wearily.

"We'll be leaving hyperspace soon," Fett informed her, "Be ready."

She straightened up in the seat beside him, her fingers tightly gripping the armrests. Fett turned back to the display screens to see how much farther they had left to go. He knew the _Hound's Tooth_ would arrive at the same destination, though _Slave I_ would be just out of firing range. A few minutes ticked away and he watched the stars streaming past the ship in thoughtful silence.

Tinari visibly tensed as his hand settled on the gear to bring them out of hyperspace. Without hesitation, Fett yanked it back. He was used to the sudden and powerful lurch; the belts tightened against him and held as he was thrown forward. Tinari's painful yelp sounded beside him. Before the stars could even return to normal, Fett had punched the rear thrusters and _Slave I_ jumped into action once again.

Ahead of them lay the Starship Graveyard of Athanor. The debris from battles long since fought had all been captured around the orbit of the planet, and floated in a heap around it. Boba Fett steered _Slave I_ directly toward the bizarre cloud, engines at full power.

Tinari looked over at him wearily. "We're really going in there?"

Fett adjusted _Slave I_'s position ever so slightly, but said nothing. The child settled back into her seat, biting her lip as shadows began to fall over them. Jagged pieces of durasteel bounced with resounding thuds as they ricocheted off the shields. Small flashes of dull blue light could be seen with each impact. Tinari gasped as Fett guided _Slave I_ straight toward a tangled mess of what had once been Old Republic starfighters. The bow of a ruined Trade Federation flagship floated alongside them, the windows blown outward from a now-forgotten explosion. Tinari covered her face with her hands as Fett continued through the wreckage. Something scraped against the hull and she gnashed her teeth at the sound.

Suddenly, the dull hum of the thruster engines fell silent. Tinari uncovered her face, revealing a frown of confusion. She watched through the viewport as the ship slowly coasted along, floating in suspension with the rest of the scraps. Boba Fett was flicking switches as Tinari gazed outside, ducking instinctively every time a chunk of starship would drift toward them. Stray wires grabbed at _Slave I_ as it suddenly, yet very gently, came to a halt. After hitting a few more controls, the red-orange lights on the computer panel vanished. Only the rear scanner remained, illuminating the faces of the girl and the bounty hunter.

Fett leaned back in his chair, laying his hands flat on the arms. Tinari moved to look at the scanner, struggling briefly in the harness. She frowned after observing nothing more but space debris.

"So we're hiding now," Tinari said, adjusting her position in the seat.

Fett shook his head. "Not hiding-waiting."

The stars appeared dull through the gaps between the wreckage; dust particles of disintegrated transparisteel glittered slightly as they passed by in a strange cloud. Tinari made a face as _Slave I_ titled forward, slowly floating amidst the fragments of starfighters. She attempted to reach for Snoo, which had fallen to the floor during the attack. The seat belts stuck fast, keeping her in place and she grumbled a frustrated sigh. Bothered by the strange silence, she spoke.

"So, the monster-"

"Bossk," Fett corrected, "His name is Bossk."

Tinari frowned at the name. "So…Bossk is after us. What does he want?"

"You."

She felt sick once again, only this time it wasn't due to flying. Her voice came out in a whisper.

"But…I didn't do anything. Why is he after me?"

Boba Fett was more concerned with the blip on the rear scanner. He leaned forward to grip the controls in his palms, watching as the screen brightened, scrolling a line of data before disappearing. Tinari whimpered.

"I don't want to die!"

"The Empire wants you alive," Fett said, still gazing intently at the screen. "For whatever reason."

Tinari shook her head, grasping fistfuls of her hair. She turned to face him, grabbing his arm with both hands.

"You can't let them take me! You don't know the whole story- you have to _help_ me!"

Fett tore his arm from her grasp and she flinched, shrinking away from him.

"I told you before. You are in no position to negotiate."

"But what if I said-"

An alarm shrieked, drowning out her plea. Fett quickly silenced the warning, his attention back on the rear scanner. The _Hound's Tooth _was very close. He looked through the viewport, tapping a few keys on the control panel. The lights flickered back on in the cockpit and the engines rumbled to life. Tinari gasped, pointing.

Visible through the tangle of scrap metal and shards of transparisteel was the _Hound's Tooth_, the thruster engines flaring a bright red as it glided through space below them. _Slave I_ had steadily powered up; Tinari could feel the vibrations coursing through the framework of the ship. Boba Fett brought up all the weapons display screens, readying the laser cannons mounted just beneath the viewport and at the tail end of the ship. Tinari squirmed where she sat, bracing herself.

Fett palmed the button for the booster engines and _Slave I_ shot forward, bursting through its hiding place of debris to fall into a steep dive. Tinari caught her scream and held her breath instead as the _Hound's Tooth_ grew larger and larger through the viewport. A trail of scarlet laser bolts thudded into the _Hound_'s hull, flashing brilliant light that illuminated _Slave I_'s cockpit in an eerie glow. Fett continued the barrage until the cannons glowed hot, pulling up at the last second to avoid the rival bounty hunter's ship. Tinari's head cracked against her seat as they ascended; _Slave I_ shuddered once again and she knew Fett had released more weapons. She could just see two bright flashes before the ship made an abrupt turn, heading for a clearing in the massive ship graveyard.

The seismic charges activated, throwing off the cloud's perfect balance; _Slave I_ was rocked by the edge of the blast radius, throwing both of its passengers forward. The debris field was beginning to collapse behind them around Bossk's non-moving ship; objects spiraled before them and thudded into _Slave I_ with resounding clangs. Tinari squeezed her eyes shut as Fett flew at an angle through the remnants of an old Republic start ship, which had been torn in half by some violent explosion. Transparisteel scraped and tugged at the wings of _Slave I_; Tinari could sense shadows falling over them, knowing that the cloud was slowly beginning to cave in in order to readjust itself. Horrifying screeches sounded all around them; several objects clanged and thudded against the hull, but Tinari kept her eyes firmly shut. The grating and piercing sounds were almost unbearable. Alarms wailed and lights flashed around the cockpit, though Boba Fett remained completely still. All the noises reached a terrifying crescendo and Tinari was certain they were going to be trapped inside along with Bossk. She screamed, forcing herself not to open her eyes.

Suddenly, all was quiet.

Cautiously, Tinari popped one of her eyes open, slightly panting. Relief washed over her once she saw the familiar landscape of endless white stars. Boba Fett was studying the rear scanner yet again, watching as the ship graveyard shifted and bulged behind them.

"That should hold him for awhile," he said.

"Too close," Tinari gasped, slumping back in her seat, "We almost didn't make it!"

For a moment, the two of them sat in a weary silence, playing the recent events over in their minds. Tinari broke into a long yawn. Fett punched in a few coordinates for hyperspace, and only allowed himself to relax once _Slave I_ made the jump. Tinari was still looking at the rear scanner, hoping Bossk would stay behind.

"I'm glad he's gone," she said.

Boba Fett glanced at the scanner before turning to study the damage reports.

"I don't like being followed."

Now that all of the inconveniences were gone, he could focus on the next task at hand. He looked over at the girl, watching as she rubbed her eyes roughly. With a heavy sigh, she let her palms slap loudly against the arm rests and fixed the viewport with a drowsy look.

"Fierfek," she declared, "I'm really tired."

Boba Fett's eyes narrowed beneath his helmet. Tinari yawned again, shuddering.

"That's a pretty strong word for someone your age," Fett remarked, a faint trace of curiosity to his voice.

The girl raised one shoulder in a half-hearted shrug.

"My brother says it all the time."

She pulled at the straps covering her chest, scowling at their tightness. Frustrated, Tinari looked back over at him. He could see she truly appeared tired.

"Where are we going now?"

Fett leaned back in the pilot's seat and didn't respond, his helmeted gaze fixed on the ceiling. Tinari made a face as she watched him, then went back to prying at the harness. It was almost comical, in a way; Fett decided to let her tire herself out. Aggravated once more with her task, she said,

"Okay…since you won't say where we're going, I'll tell a story to pass the time."

Fett was too drained to disagree with her; the dull pain in his chest was returning and he knew he'd have to change the bandages soon. Tinari folded her legs as she turned to face him, tapping her hands on her knees.

"I'll start at home. I want to tell you what happened…You might understand."

She looked up at him again, noticing he still stared at the ceiling, presumably listening.

"When I still went to school, people started talking about the Empire coming to Arbola. I guess I never thought they'd come, but they did. At first it wasn't bad…but…" Tinari sighed, hugging herself. "It got bad after awhile."

Fett could hear her fidgeting around; she gave a happy exclamation after finding the button that released the belts from her shoulders. She gathered up Snoo from the floor and held him close.

"The soldiers in white-Stormtroopers, I think- they came to my house to take away my Daddy," Tinari continued, "But he ran, and took me with him. My Mom and brother were separated from us…"

She paused to pull Snoo more comfortably against her. Fett kept his eyes on the gray panels of durasteel above as she went on.

"We ran for a long time. He hid me some place and said not to come out until it was quiet, no matter what I heard. So I did." Tinari moved around uncomfortably, and took in a breath before she said, "But I saw everything."

Boba Fett looked at her, then, watching as she smoothed down the stuffed animal's fur distractedly. Sadness had come to her eyes.

"They killed your father."

Tinari shook her head. "They took him away. But they beat him up first, so he didn't move…they had to drag him away through the dirt."

She gazed up at Fett, straight into his eyes. He recognized that look all too well…

"Daddy told me to find my Mom and brother; he said we'd meet again on Coruscant."

Fett straightened up in his chair. "That's what you're doing on my ship, I take it?"

Tinari rubbed her eyes as she spoke. Her voice trembled only slightly.

"If I knew people were after me, I would have stayed away from it…" she let her shoulders slouch heavily and avoided his gaze. "But I was hoping you'd be going to Coruscant, or at least some place close enough."

Silence fell over them once again. Tinari sighed, rocking Snoo from side to side. Fett stood up from his chair and she watched him, questioningly.

"I'm going to inspect the damage we've sustained. Don't touch anything."

Tinari nodded, stifling another yawn. Fett turned and left the cockpit to climb down the ladder, scrolling through the damage reports on the inside of his helmet. There were several punctures to the left wing and one of the rear thrusters was damaged; Fett knew the jump into hyperspace would bring additional damage to the ship, though he'd be able to make it back without suffering too much more. From what he could gather, everything was fixable, though he'd have to be cautious from now on.

Once back up into the cockpit he could see Tinari had listened to him and remained where she sat. As Fett moved closer, he realized she had fallen asleep, her head slumped heavily to the side. Thankful she was quiet for the moment, he slid back into the pilot's seat and brought up the database that told him the latest bounties to be posted.

The girl's hadn't been detected until after he'd left Arbola; he must have missed the alert while looking after her in the cargo hold. Fett glanced over at her, still sleeping peacefully in the chair beside him. She sighed and slid further downward against the chair, several strands of hair falling into her eyes.

Boba Fett stood once again and tapped her on the head in an attempt to wake her. She didn't budge; he shook her by the shoulder, but Tinari remained unresponsive. Feeling a pang of irritation, Fett grasped one of her arms and pulled her upright, hoisting her from the seat. She frowned in her sleep, but did nothing more, tucking her head under the chin of his helmet. Fett carried her down the ladder, holding her with one arm. She had instinctively grasped the back of his battle suit, hooking her forearm beneath his shoulder. Fett continued on into the cargo hold where the cages were and opened the on the she'd occupied earlier, kneeling down to set her inside. Tinari rolled on to her side and stirred slightly, but remained asleep. Fett closed the cage behind her and walked away.

Before he left, he hesitated.

He wasn't sure why; Fett looked back over his shoulder and saw that Tinari remained as he had left her, undisturbed and even content. Shaking his head, as if to clear it, he left the cargo hold to return to the cockpit. Before turning back to his other tasks, Fett flicked on the camera feed in the cargo hold.

The bounty hunter thought for a long time in the silence.


	6. Human, After All

**Author's note: Hello and welcome to chapter 6, the turning point. Haha. Why am I telling you this?? Well, just a head's up: I'm going to be very protective of this chapter. Let me know what you think about it, but I just might get all defensive. XD I STRIVED to keep it in character, but let me know how I did. Okay…? I'll go away now. Enjoy! ;D **

_A boy stumbled across a battlefield. _

_Thick dust caked his boots and spiraled around him in clouds as he trudged on, covering his ears with his palms as starships roared above him. Sunlight had beaten down on him all day and his cheeks were red with burns. He stumbled again, boots catching on piles of debris. A chorus of mechanical wails came to his ears once he clawed through a mound of severed droid parts. The boy shouted._

_"Dad! Dad, where are you?!"_

_Something snatched his ankle and he screamed, kicking frantically at the droid hand that had seized him, sparks jumping from the ends of exposed wires. Once free from its grasp, he rolled to his feet and began shouting again._

_The boy hoped he was dreaming, but the dust choking him and the stink of exhaust was too real to ignore. He looked up and watched as the last transport rose into the sky, leaving him alone in the arena, a tiny life form amidst all the broken machines. The boy skidded into a clearing, brushing the hair from his eyes, and suddenly felt the world fall out from beneath him._

_The blue and grey T-visor helmet lay in the sand at his feet._

_"…Dad…"_

_He hardly recognized his own voice. The boy sank to a crouch, taking the helmet in his trembling hands and gently pressing it to his forehead. The world blurred around him and tears dropped on to the armor, one after the other, as the boy realized his father was gone. _

*****

Boba Fett jolted awake. He looked around for a moment, feeling his heart pounding against his chest. Forcing himself to relax, he sat up straighter in the pilot's chair, digging his fingers into the armrests.

He rarely dreamt. To dream of a past memory like that seemed like a waste of sleep.

Gritting his teeth, Fett leaned forward and hung his head, elbows on his knees. He hadn't thought about that day in a very long time. Looking back up at _Slave I_'s viewport, Fett recognized the information reflected across the glass. He'd been reading the girl's file and must have fallen asleep. Such a thing rarely happened, but Fett couldn't find any other explanation. With a slight sigh, he straightened back up and stretched, focusing back on the information he'd been reading.

The bounty for Tinari Luna had been posted a few weeks ago, though he'd been tracking someone for the gambler Roth and hadn't noticed it. The reward had been raised due to the fact it was a priority- the Empire wanted this girl as soon as possible.

Images flashed across the viewport as he brought up the brief but informative file of a man named Samuel Luna, Tinari's father. He'd been successful on Arbola as a member of the government, though he didn't have the arrogant look that Fett saw on many politicians. In fact, he had an everyman quality to him; the file told him Luna had served in the military prior to living on the peaceful Arbola. His current status was unknown, though Fett knew the Empire had taken this man, judging from the girl's account.

Side-by-side, he could see the family resemblance. Tinari had the man's smile, the same eyes. Samuel Luna's crime was listed as 'conspiracy against the Empire,' leading Fett to believe he must have been associated with the Rebel Alliance. Whatever the Empire wanted from him was evidently not good enough- and now they needed Luna's daughter.

Boba Fett carefully observed both the man and the girl. The more he looked at them, the more alike they seemed. For some reason, his thoughts shifted back to his father and he punched a few keys in effort to ignore it. The information vanished, the viewport wiped of words. The last thing he needed was thoughts of the past clouding his judgment.

He knew now that Tinari was a mere bargaining chip; the Empire needed her to get her father to talk. Either that, or he'd coughed up the information and they had done away with him. His daughter was just a loose end they needed to tie up, something they'd get rid of once she gave them whatever they needed.

_They'll kill her._

Boba Fett was most surprised to feel the anger in his thoughts. He let out a sigh and closed his eyes beneath the helmet. Guilt- that was something he hadn't felt in a very long time. He had no reason to feel it; the girl was worth a lot of credits, and it would only be beneficial for him to turn her in. Once Fett had composed himself, he opened his eyes again, pensively surveying his surroundings. A peculiar object caught his attention; as he leaned forward, he recognized what it was- the girl's stuffed animal, which she called 'Snoo.'

Fett reached over to grasp one of its ears, pulling it from the shadow of the co-pilot's seat. The creature was bizarre-looking to him, with its blue fur, floppy ears, black eyes and long snout. Fett held it before him, debating on throwing it back to the floor where he could no longer see it. Just before he could toss it back, he became aware that the animal appeared to weigh more than expected. Fett took it in his palm and turned it over; strange bulges seemed to shift amidst the stuffing. He grasped the end of a tiny zipper with his finger tips and pulled. At first, all he could see was a mass of white fluff, but upon closer inspection, he found an object hidden inside.

It was a small hologram projector, though it required a certain code to activate it. Intrigued, Fett shook the animal, hearing a faint clacking sound inside. Two more items fell into his palm beside the hologram projector; all of them were information holders; Fett was most interested by a rounded object, which he held before his eyes in the palm of his other hand. It was a holocron, a tiny device that stored several pieces of information in its layers. The peculiar thing about it was that only a Jedi or someone of equal power could access it.

The bounty hunter knew for certain these items-all seemingly random and unrelated- were what made Tinari worth 150,000 credits. The holoprojector had a somewhat difficult code to break, though Boba Fett had experience with such devices; after a few trial runs through_ Slave I_'s computer, he had found the right code, and set it on the control panel to await its message.

A fairly large image sprang into view. For a moment, Fett couldn't tell what he was seeing until the image cleared, revealing what appeared to be the interior of someone's home. A man soon came into view, looking harried and troubled. His breaths were irregular and Fett could see his hands trembling as he leaned forward to adjust the camera's view upon himself. The image distorted, and the man stepped back. He looked fairly young to Fett, with dark hair and a pair of thin-rimmed glasses, which he quickly pulled from his face.

"I don't have much time," he said, "They're coming for me very soon."

Fett watched curiously as the man looked around the room, licking his lips before turning back to the camera. It was obvious he had controlled whatever fear he'd felt and was concentrating on only the camera.

"My name is Samuel Luna. My wife and son are heading to the port to meet with your contacts and hopefully they will see you in due time. My daughter and I are separated from them and…"

The man realized what he was about to say; his face contorted into a terrible grimace, but he forced himself to continue.

"…And we may not make it in time. If that is the case, you need to know what I do. A few months ago, myself and a, uh, colleague of mine came into possession of this holocron." The image of Samuel Luna presented the object to Fett in his palm. "It is from the destroyed Jedi Temple on Coruscant and contains the truth about the fall of the Old Republic. We weren't able to look at everything, but what I know is essential to the survival of the Alliance."

The man dared to show an anxious smile. "We can take them all down with this, Senator Organa."

A strange noise, sounded and he looked off-screen. Fett could hear a feminine shout of 'Daddy!' and Luna winced before turning back to the camera.

"I'm afraid I afford to stay any longer. If I am unable to visit Coruscant, my daughter Tinari will give you this message and all the other information I've discovered. I will make sure she's well taken care of."

He reached for the camera again and gave it a weary sigh.

"Good-bye."

The hologram flickered; the last thing the watching bounty hunter saw were Samuel Luna's worried eyes before the image abruptly vanished. He sat in silence for a few minutes, processing what he just heard.

Boba Fett was-and always had been- impartial to the conflict between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance. He hardly knew anything about the fall of the Old Republic, and never gave what he did hear a second thought. But it was interesting to see it from both perspectives. The Rebels were more cunning than the Empire gave them credit for; he would have worked for them often if they paid more.

The other information devices, aside from the holocron, contained a list of names, which were Imperial spies within the Rebellion. There were also schematics of Imperial starfighters and Destroyers.

_Pretty extensive for a bunch of guerrilla fighters. _

Fett examined the devices for a few more minutes, recording the information of each into _Slave I_'s database. A yellow light began pulsing on the control board, followed by the familiar beep that signaled he had reached his destination. Fett placed the objects in one of the nearby storage spaces, tossing the stuffed animal back into the seat beside him. _Slave I_ shuddered as it jumped out of hyperspace; Fett took the controls in his hands and guided the ship ahead. He leaned over to flick on the camera feed in the cargo hold to check on the child.

She was awake, though as the image adjusted he could see something was different about her. There was no audio on the cameras, but he could clearly see she was crying. Fett stared at the screen as the girl silently sobbed, rocking back and forth. A swirl of long-forgotten emotions came to the bounty hunter; helplessness, sadness, loneliness…

Boba Fett gripped the ships controls tighter in his fists, attempting to clear his mind. He knew collecting this bounty would be a good deal, one of the best. Once the child was gone, he'd never have to think about any of this again.

The girl had composed herself, though she still hugged her knees and rocked back and forth. She touched the wounds on her face and grimaced, the tears no doubt stinging into them. She suddenly buried her face in her arms and her shoulders began twitching with more sobs.

Fett abruptly flicked off the camera feed and the screen darkened yet again. He looked up through the viewport and watched as the seemingly dormant shapes of Star Destroyers approached. Fett knew all he had to do was state he'd picked up the latest Imperial bounty, dock with one of the ships and hand the girl over to whoever asked for her. There was nothing difficult to it at all.

But he could picture how she would react. She'd fight, try to run away, scream and howl. He would probably have to hand her over-still flailing- to the Stormtroopers, and they'd take her away. She'd sob and call for her mother and father…

_They'll kill her. She's innocent. It'll be my fault. _

A dull chime sounded impossibly loud in the silence, drawing his attention. His comlink had been activated.

"Please identify yourself," said a calm, accented voice, "You are entering an Imperial Blockade."

Fett wordlessly reached up and pressed the response button, transmitting his clearance code. There was beat of silence, followed by a short burst of static before the same voice answered,

"Thank-you for your cooperation- you are cleared to enter, Boba Fett. Have you business in this sector?"

He hesitated, drumming his fingers once across the control panel.

"No," was the final reply.

"Very well, sir. Good day."

The transmission ended. Boba Fett leaned back in his seat, growling to himself. He watched in silence through the viewport as _Slave I_ coasted forward between the Star Destroyers. Any other time, his conscience would have been clear; he would have done what he was supposed to do.

Any other time.


	7. Scars

**Author's note: Hi there! :D Just a few words on this one…it's a tad long, but it's got a lot of character to it. Hopefully you all enjoy it. Again, I strived to keep Fett in character here as well. I think I got it, but just let me know. XD Scruffynerfherder- I'm sure you'll be able to tell me haha. Alright. Enough talk- happy reading!! ~Hilts. **

Tinari leaned against the wall, sniffling. She'd been unwillingly snapped from sleep by the ship coming back out of hyperspace, and had the bruise on her leg to prove it. She shivered in the darkness and hugged herself for warmth. Telling the story had been a bad idea; now all she could think about was how she hadn't seen her family in months.

Boba Fett wasn't going to help her- she should've known that. Her mother had been right to try and stop her from listening to all those stories…

The lights suddenly flickered on in the cargo hold and Tinari yelped at the pain in her eyes. She kept them closed until the sound of approaching footsteps grew louder. The blurry form of the bounty hunter stood in front of her on the other side of the bars. Tinari sniffed and rubbed her eyes to clear them.

"I figured out where we're going," she said, "You're taking me to meet the soldiers in white."

He was silent, of course. Tinari crossed her arms and looked away, trying to ignore the fact tears had blurred her vision once again. She clenched her jaw to keep from sobbing in front of him.

"I came to return something to you."

Tinari frowned, turning her head slightly to look at him. She gasped.

"Snoo!"

She scrambled to her feet and ran toward the cage. Boba Fett backed away, avoiding her outstretched hands, which now clawed empty air. Tinari whined worriedly.

"Hey! Give him to me-you're hurting him!!"

Fett held Snoo dangling from one ear and she whined again, as straining to reach her beloved animal.

"Please give him back! I'll behave when you take me to the soldiers if you'll let me hold him!"

"Be patient," said Boba Fett, "Before I give you this…creature…you need to tell me something."

"What is it?"

"Do you know why they took your father?"

Tinari's eyes filled with tears once again. "No! Nobody would tell me; that's what made it so scary." She lost her patience and reached for Snoo once again.

Fett kept him just of our reach, still holding him tightly by the ear.

"Are you telling the truth?"

Tinari was frustrated. "Yes! Why are you asking me so many questions?!"

Her voice cracked. She could have sworn she heard him breathe the slightest of laughs beneath his helmet. Boba Fett pointed at her.

"You and I have much to talk about."

Tinari frowned at his words, but still made another attempt to grab for Snoo. Fett stepped back yet again, reaching for the nearby console. He punched in a code to unlock the cell door and Tinari's eyes widened in surprise. Something beeped; Fett pulled at the cage and it opened. Tinari grabbed the strap of her satchel and scurried out into the cargo hold to stand beside him. Wordlessly, he passed the stuffed animal to her and she squealed, snatching it up in her arms.

"Stay here for now," Fett said, closing the barred door behind her.

Tinari nodded, watching him as she swung Snoo from side to side in her arms. Before Fett could leave her, she stopped him with another question.

"Why'd you let me out?"

He turned to look at her over his shoulder, one foot on the bottom rung of the ladder. Tinari blinked, awaiting an answer. She rubbed her cheek in Snoo's fur reassuringly.

"Somebody once told me a favor was an investment," Boba Fett replied at last.

Tinari watched questioningly as he ascended the ladder and disappeared from view. She settled on to the nearby bench and wondered what else this journey had in store for her.

Boba Fett settled back behind the controls of _Slave I_, still upset with himself. An attack of the conscience was something that usually came with poor consequences. Unfortunately, it was too late to turn back- he was stuck with the child. And now he had to answer for that.

_Slave I _needed repairs, and it bothered him to know that it was just limping along wounded. It would be able to make the journey to Coruscant in a few days. Hyperspace would most likely shatter the left wing and Fett would have to wrestle the ship down to the planet, risking collision and killing both himself and the girl. Almost reassuringly, he tapped the control panel; he'd just have to take it easy from now on.

He left the ship at a decent speed, setting the coordinates for Coruscant into the computer. With a small shake, _Slave I_ adjusted to autopilot mode. Fett pushed himself from the seat and walked to the edge of the ladder.

"Come up!"

He could hear shuffling and the rapid tapping of the girl's tattered traveling boots before she began to climb her way up to the cockpit. Fett turned to rummage through the storage spaces for a ration to give her, knowing she'd be complaining about hunger soon. She smiled at him once he could see her, and he pointed to the co-pilot's chair.

Tinari walked up to look out the viewport, dropping her satchel at her feet. Snoo could be seen poking out from underneath the bag's covering. Fett watched disapprovingly as she edged near the control panel, still gazing out at the stars. Gently, she pressed her hand to the transparisteel, and grinned as a small circle of condensation appeared around her palm and fingers.

Fett went back to the compartments and found what he was looking for. As he made his way back to the seats, he could see that Tinari had fogged up a portion of the viewport and was busy drawing several heart shapes through the frost.

"Here," Fett said, "Take this."

He was happy the girl had stopped her decoration of the viewport and took the container from his hand. She flopped into her seat and cracked it open, beginning to crunch on the square as Fett settled back into his usual place.

"This one tastes just as bad," Tinari informed him, making a face. Grabbing Snoo from her bag, she added, "Are you going to tell me where we're going?"

"Coruscant."

Tinari gasped. She was at first surprised at the fact he'd even answered her question. But what he said had surprised her even more.

"You mean it?! You're going to help me?!"

Boba Fett looked down at her, into her blue-green eyes, which had brightened considerably with hope. He nodded once and she beamed at him.

"Thank-you! Thank-you!!"

Tinari hugged his arm and he flinched.

"Don't get too happy about it," Fett remarked, attempting to shake her grasp, "In the end you may not feel so grateful."

She let go of him, frowning. Fett felt almost relieved, as if she'd been sucking the energy out of him. Tinari stared at him thoughtfully, trying to decide for herself just exactly what he'd meant. Fett spoke before she could.

"I wouldn't worry too much. We've a long journey ahead of us."

Tinari sighed, leaning away from him and back into her seat, cuddling Snoo. Fett busied himself with something on the control panel, feeling the girl's eyes upon him. He wasn't used to having a co-pilot, let alone a child around…

"You want to play a game?"

Fett flicked a few switches, stabilizing something on the damaged wing.

"No."

He didn't have to look at her to know she was disappointed. Fett continued to scroll through some information on one of the scanners, making sure they weren't being followed. Tinari's voice broke back into his thoughts.

"Are you sure?" It's fun…I used to play it with my Dad all the time."

Fett didn't reply, sighing instead. Briefly, his eyes flickered to the locker containing the black book.

"I can play it myself, though," Tinari went on.

Fett understood she just wanted an excuse for something to keep her busy. Without looking up from the data screens, he spoke.

"If you can do so quietly, you may."

Tinari revealed a small smile and hopped from her seat, moving to sit in the space behind the chairs. Fett could hear her sifting through her pack for something, then a series of pattering sounds that meant she'd purposefully spilled something across the floor. He pursed his lips but continued on with his work.

It didn't take long for her to immerse herself in the game; Fett could hear her humming as she played, occasionally exclaiming in triumph for whatever reason. There were a few strange sounds as well, but nothing worth catching his attention. After awhile, he became used to the noises and didn't give them a second thought.

Tinari stared at the floor thoughtfully, her chin in her palm. There were only few of them left; she eyed the 'X'-shaped trinkets critically, fiddling with the small sphere in her fingers.

"I think I can get 'em," she whispered to Snoo, who sat next to her on the floor.

Tinari glanced up at Fett next, still hunched over in his seat. Lights flashed around him with every stroke of the keys on the panel. She turned back to the trinkets. Four were left- she'd never gotten four at once. Tinari gripped the sphere tight, lifting her arm high above her head. She brought the ball down as hard as she could; it bounced and she lunged for the last four objects.

"Yes!"

She'd caught them all before the second bounce, triumphantly holding them tight in her fist. Unfortunately, Tinari realized just how hard she'd actually bounced the sphere. She yelped as it ricocheted off one of the compartments, nearly hitting her. The sphere flashed once as it bounced again behind her, thudding on to two more walls before heading straight for Boba Fett. Tinari pulled her hair, watching helplessly as the ball hit several switches on the control board. _Slave I_ suddenly rocked, and Tinari could see a stream of red shooting outward through the viewport.

One of the rockets had been activated.

Boba Fett seized the bouncing sphere in his gloved fist, punching a few more buttons with the other. Tinari blinked as a brilliant flash suddenly appeared outside, signaling Fett had somehow detonated the missile. He turned in his chair to face her, holding the sphere between his thumb and forefinger. Several colors swirled within it, from blue to green to yellow and back again.

"…I'm sorry," Tinari squeaked.

She gave him an apologetic smile, but even beneath the emotionless gaze of the helmet, she could tell Boba Fett was not amused. Without a word, he held out his other hand. Tinari made a face, still clutching her winning group of trinkets. Fett gestured with his hand again and she heaved a sigh.

"It was an accident…"

Tinari gathered up all the little 'X' shaped objects and piled them into the bounty hunter's palm. Fett turned back around and she struggled to see over his shoulder as he hid the items from her. Tinari crossed her arms and pouted.

"Find something else to do," he advised her.

*******

The first day of traveling passed, though Fett quickly discovered the girl asked too many questions. Or rather, too many questions he cared to answer. In spite of his aloofness, however, Tinari remained cheerful. It was something he couldn't quite understand; she told him stories or talked about anything that came to mind. He only had to tell to be quiet a few times, and she always listened to whatever he said. After awhile, however, Fett grew accustomed to hearing her talk about anything and everything, realizing it was futile to try and tune her out.

It was apparent she was lonely and needed someone to talk to, or in his case, someone to talk at. Nevertheless, during the second day of traveling Tinari fell into an uncharacteristic bout of silence, staring dejectedly at the floor. Her cheek was cupped heavily in her palm and she looked thoroughly depressed.

"We're nearly half way there," Fett said.

Tinari glanced over at him, then turned her gaze back to the floor. He'd taken note of the fact she wasn't looking out the viewport; he was now used to explaining what systems and stars they were passing. Fett tried again at conversation, surprised he actually wanted to listen to her talk about something.

"It should only take one more day, at the least."

Tinari sighed and nodded her reply. They fell into silence yet again, broken only by the constant hum of the thruster engines and the occasional beeps of one of the scanners.

"…what if I can't find them?"

Tinari's voice was soft, worried. Fett looked over at her, watching as she twirled a strand of hair tight around her finger. He assumed she was talking about her family. The girl gazed at him helplessly, right into his eyes.

"Anything can be found if you look hard enough," Fett declared.

The tension visibly left her as she studied him for a few moments, though doubt was still in her eyes. She crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat.

"I hope you're right…"

Tinari focused back on the viewport and sighed to herself once more, gathering Snoo back up in her arms. Boba Fett turned the pilot's seat around after she'd settled, wincing at the dull pain etching its way across his chest; it was time for another Bacta treatment. Feeling Tinari's eyes following him, he strode up to the medical compartment and procured the necessary items. He still needed to put on the spare torso armor he kept onboard; the old piece was lying on the floor at his feet, cracked from the blackened hole made by Bossk's rifle blast.

Fett flinched only slightly as the Bacta seeped into the burn, quickly applying a few bandages and refastening the front of his battle suit. He turned back to Tinari, taking a quick look at her wounds. They were healing, but could have used another treatment.

"Come here."

She clambered down from her chair and stood beside him, still hugging Snoo to her chest. The girl noticed the Bacta canister in his hand and cringed.

"I don't like that stuff."

Fett had already pulled off his gloves, beginning to open the container. Tinari heaved a sigh. The Bacta was applied to her gashes once again and she whined as the sticky substance stung unpleasantly into the wounds.

"They should be healed by the time we reach Coruscant," Fett said as he replaced the items. "Do _not_ touch it."

Tinari made a face, dropping her hand heavily to her side. It was as though he had eyes on the back of his head. She watched as the bounty hunter stooped to gather up the ruined armor plates at his feet, pushing past her to climb down the ladder. Tinari watched him, still trying to ignore the painful itching across her face. Once there was enough room, she set her feet on the rungs below and followed him.

The cargo hold was alight with the familiar dull lights, which hummed slightly above them as Tinari shuffled over to Boba Fett, who was typing an access code into one of the storage lockers. He looked over his shoulder at her, as if to make sure she wasn't causing any trouble. Something flashed on the console and the locker door slid open, revealing a replica of the Mandalorian armor inside. He pulled out the necessary items and the door slid closed behind him. Fett moved to sit on the nearby bench, setting the armor beside him. Tinari promptly hopped up to sit on his left. Her following sigh sounded so disappointed; Fett turned to look at her.

"What's troubling you now?" he asked, a touch of irritation to his voice.

"Nothing," Tinari pouted, "My face hurts. I'm tired. I'm hungry. And I just realized how _ugly_ I'm going to be!"

She shook her head hopelessly, absently picking at Snoo's fur. Fett inspected the armor, pulling at the straps as the girl sniffled miserably next to him.

"What do you mean?"

"It's because of that stupid monster-Bossk or whatever his stupid name is- he scratched me all up! He pulled me through a _window_!! And now I'm going to have scars all over my face, and my mom won't even recognize me because I'm going to be _ugly_!!" Tinari finished her tirade and sniffed again, panting slightly. As an afterthought, she added, "And you took away my Jax!"

Boba Fett allowed himself a small laugh, setting the torso armor down and moving to stand from the bench. Tinari looked up at him expectantly, though she was frowning.

"You'll be just fine. Overreacting never helps," Fett said.

He turned his head to reveal three long slashes that shined a dull silver across the side of his helmet and pointed to them.

"I was scratched, too."

Tinari was indignant. "That's not the same!"

Fett just stared at her. She regarded him silently as well, her little jaw clenched, jutting out defiantly as she crossed her arms.

"You should be grateful you survived," the bounty hunter cautioned her, "Scars are only reminders of battles you've fought. They should be considered honorable markings; they prove your survival."

"Sure. You wear all that armor- it takes all the scars for you!" Tinari retorted, nodding to the green-painted breastplate sitting at the end of the bench.

Boba Fett heaved a sigh, shaking his head. He turned slightly, his fingers pulling at the protective coverings around his neck. Tinari continued her frustrated blabbering, scowling at the armor.

"I don't have anything to protect _me_. I'm going to be ugly now, all scratched up. And it's all because-"

Boba Fett had placed both of his palms on the side of his helmet as she spoke and began to lift it up. He hesitated, as if thinking, but the moment passed and he pulled the helmet from over his head.

Tinari's words stopped dead and she gaped at him, eyes round.

For a moment, she just stared. And the man she now saw stared right back. She attempted to speak, but found that she couldn't. It was almost as though someone entirely different had appeared in front of her.

He was pale, with short jet black hair and a narrow face. His lips formed a tight line; his jaw was clenched, though he was not angry. Several scars showed as thin white lines against his skin, many of them jagged or strangely shaped. Tinari would not have known this man to be Boba Fett if it weren't for his eyes. They were as black and narrow as the T-visor of his helmet.

"There are worse scars to have," the bounty hunter said, in a low voice.

Tinari blinked, her ears adjusting to the sound; unfiltered through the helmet, his voice was softer and more gravelly. She could clearly hear an accent. Fett reached for the torso armor and began to pull it over his head, sliding his arms properly through the holes. Tinari stared at him, an inevitable frown creasing her forehead.

"You sound funny."

Boba Fett allowed himself a laugh, a throaty staccato sound that made Tinari wrinkle her nose. He smiled, and the scars stretched as his lips made the movement. Small crow's feet appeared at the corners of his eyes. Tinari couldn't help but smile back, observing him quietly as he pulled at the straps to secure the armor in place. She edged closer to the helmet, which had been placed at the end of the bench. Tinari looked back up at him, noticing he was watching her. She tucked her hands behind her back almost instantly.

"You've seen a lot of battles, then."

Fett nodded. Tinari studied his face again, her eyes narrowed in thought. She took note of a very long scar that cut a white stripe through part of his hair, traveling the length of his face to his chin. Tinari scooted out of his way as Fett suddenly moved to sit beside her on the bench, still fastening things to his armor.

"What happened there?"

She indicated the scar. Fett looked at her a moment before replying, briefly tracing the mark with his finger as if remembering the incident.

"A vibroblade," he finally said, adjusting his shoulder plate, "A big one."

Tinari gave a small start as he made a sudden slashing motion through the air.

"Happened when I was young; I had to hunt in disguise so…no armor of course."

Fett leaned back against the wall, propping his boot up on one of the nearby crates. He reached for the helmet and set it in his lap, pulling at the battle suit covering his arms. Tinari continued to gaze up at him, her arms folded around herself. She stretched out her arm and carefully pointed to his cheek. Fett blinked.

"What about that one?" Tinari asked.

He touched the spot, feeling the grooves beneath his fingers. Fett winced, as if remembering the pain. The scar had made a 'pit' in his cheek, shaped like a three-pronged star. He smirked.

"That one is a permanent reminder of a stupid mistake. I was fifteen; still a kid. Got in an argument with the merchandise- a violation of so many rules. I let my guard down for one second and…" Fett jabbed the air with his finger, this time making a twisting motion. Tinari grimaced.

"…the crazy barve nearly killed me."

"Must've hurt bad…"

Fett nodded, and his eyebrows rose.

"Of course it did. But you learn from experience."

He picked up the helmet from his lap as he spoke. Tinari's eyes fell to the object as she thoughtfully returned the nod. Her fingers flexed unconsciously as she looked at the helmet; Fett took notice, not surprised when she whispered her next question.

"…Can I see it?"

The bounty hunter sighed, considering. Tinari watched his eyes move from side to side as he thought. When Fett finally looked at her, she already knew the answer.

"I'm afraid not."

Tinari nodded, but managed a small smile. She understood at any rate; after hearing all those stories about Fett and his armor, she'd asked her father why the bounty hunter would be so particular about it. He'd said it was because that was all Fett had. Tinari hadn't understood at the time, but she did now. She realized he traveled the galaxy alone-it made her feel sad.

"Do you ever get lonely, Boba Fett?"

Tinari leaned against the wall as she spoke, watching her boots as she kicked her legs. Fett balanced the helmet on his knee and leaned back as well. He closed his eyes and Tinari saw for the first time that he looked tired.

"No," Fett said.

Tinari raised her eyebrows. "Really? I've been alone for a long time, and I hate it. That's why I try to make friends."

He spoke before she could even ask the next question, and she picked at her laces, embarrassed.

"I've had few people I'd call 'friend.' And only one of them is still alive."

"But at least you have one."

Fett frowned slightly, though his eyes remained closed. Tinari sighed, looking up at him again. In a way, he almost looked like her father, maybe even sounded like him a little. Carefully, she tucked her legs underneath her and leaned against him. It wasn't very comfortable, but the action was reassuring. His shoulder plate was cold against her cheek.; that was certainly different from her father. However, she felt just as safe there with Fett as she would be with Samuel.

Fett tensed almost threateningly, but she ignored him. He shrugged his shoulder roughly and Tinari was presently pushed away. She understood his actions, almost used to them. Her eyes fell to the symbol on his shoulder plate and she frowned curiously. Fett leaned forward with a small sigh.

"We could be friends," she suggested with a grin, "We're a lot alike."

He had to laugh at that. His smile widened just enough to show a flash of teeth.

Tinari frowned. "But it's true."

Fett held up his helmet, scraping something from the forehead with his knuckle. He smirked one final time before moving to place it over his head. Tinari pursed her lips in frustration. She pointed.

What she said caused Fett to pause, mid-motion. He stared at her from over his arm, dark eyes flashing with what Tinari hoped was curiosity. She repeated the sound, though much quietly.

"…How do you know that word?" Fett wanted to know.

"My dad taught me." Tinari smiled sheepishly. "It does mean 'helmet,' right? Or did I say 'bucket' by accident?"

Fett shook his head slightly. "No, you're correct…"

Tinari noticed that he appeared to be either confused or surprised, or perhaps both. Either way, she didn't really like to see him that way. He shifted position on the bench, frowning. Tinari gazed up at him expectantly, happy that he actually seemed willing to say something to her. For a moment he studied her, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He finally spoke.

Tinari fixed him with a strange look, confused. The words all sounded jumbled; her ears itched at the strangeness of it. Oddly enough, the words sounded familiar, as though she remembered the phrase from somewhere. Fett was about to say something else, but a grin suddenly spread across her face. She looked thrilled with something, though controlled her excitement.

"_Yes, Bounty Hunter_." Tinari answered.

Fett had to sit back, almost unable to believe it. She could speak Mandalorian. She was a little rough around the edges with it, but she could at least understand some of it. Tinari had fixed him with a smug look, and went back to kicking her legs. Fett smirked.

"Well…I'm impressed."

She giggled.

**Author's Note (again!) haha. Just in case it bothered any one, I didn't use the Mando'a out of resepct for Karen Traviss. I don't want her coming after me. lol. If it doesn't get the point across enough, just message me, and I'll tell you how it goes. :D**


	8. The City Planet

**Author's note: Hi there! Sorry if I've kept you waiting. This chapter certainly gave me a few problems, which have now been worked out, though not with out sacrificing the strength of my wrists in the process haha. Enjoy!~Hilts. **

"Listen up."

Tinari was at once alert, tearing her gaze from the viewport to look at Boba Fett, who had finished inspecting something on the computer's datascreens. He was once again wearing his helmet, and Tinari felt almost as though he were friendlier to her with it on. He turned in the chair to face her and she gave him a small smile.

"We will be approaching Coruscant shortly. But before then, we need to discuss a few things."

Tinari nodded, fidgeting at the mention of the planet's name. She'd been very patient and had braved terrifying things for this moment. But Boba Fett still had her undivided attention.

"First things first. Coruscant is one gigantic city; that means it'll be packed with Stormtroopers." Tinari visibly flinched as he continued. "You must stay calm. Don't say a word; I'll do the talking."

She nodded once again, unconsciously wringing the end of her tunic in her hands.

"You need to promise me something, Tinari."

She felt a strange sensation in her stomach and sat up straight in her chair. He'd actually used her name instead of calling her 'girl' or 'child.' And he was asking for a promise.

"Wh-what is it?" she asked, almost cautiously.

Boba Fett leaned forward in his chair, the visor of his helmet trained on her the entire time.

"You _cannot_ go wandering off, no matter what you see. You cannot go anywhere unless I come with you. Especially where we're headed."

Tinari could hear a touch of urgency in his voice she'd never heard before. The way he told her everything made her feel uneasy.

"Tinari," Fett said, "do you understand what I'm saying?"

She looked up at him. "Y-yes. I promise I won't go anywhere."

"Good."

He turned back to _Slave I_'s controls, punching a few keys on the panel. The ship gave a small shudder and Tinari felt a dropping sensation before Fett began steering manually yet again. The stars seemed to swirl slightly as _Slave I_ tipped into a turn. Tinari let out a small gasp.

"Wow…"

Coruscant was a distant sphere ahead, glittering with brilliant yellow light that covered the planet in strange circles. She didn't have to ask, already knowing that the various shapes and lines all represented cities. It was eerily beautiful and somewhat foreboding at the same time. As they came closer, she could see just how large the planet was.

"Where will we find my family?" she whispered, more to herself than Boba Fett.

"It won't be easy, but I know a good place to start," he said.

Tinari would have said something, but found the words were lost on her as soon as she recognized the familiar outline of an Imperial Star Destroyer ahead. It was seemingly stopped for the moment off to their left; Tinari scrambled as far back into her seat as possible, whimpering as two TIE-fighters slowly made their way toward _Slave I_.

"They see us!" she cried," Do something!"

"Take it easy. This is routine procedure, especially for a ship that's been as beat up as this one."

If Fett was attempting to comfort her, he wasn't doing a very good job. She whipped around to face him, shaking her head. Her eyes were wide with fear.

"I don't care! I want to hide!"

Boba Fett shook his head. "You stay right there. Buckle up."

Tinari jumped nearly a foot as the comlink ringed above them. She moved to clamber out of the seat, but Fett leaned over and seized her arm. She looked at him as though he had betrayed her once he pulled her back into the chair. The comlink ringed again and flashed.

"Keep quiet. And _buckle…up_."

Tinari clipped the harness into an 'x' over her chest as fast as she could once she heard Fett's tone of voice. Her hands were trembling. The comlink chimed yet again; the bounty hunter put a finger to his helmet and Tinari pressed her hands over her mouth to muffle any sound.

"_Slave I_, please respond. You are entering the Coruscant orbit."

The TIE-fighters were closing in on them. Tinari stifled a whimper as Boba Fett clicked the button to respond.

"Requesting permission to land."

"Please transmit your clearance code."

He flicked a switch; Tinari watched transfixed as the two fighters passed the viewport and flew over them. Shadows darkened the cockpit briefly as they went and she flinched. A voice sounded through the comlink once more.

"You are cleared to enter Coruscant atmosphere. The fighters will escort you down. Repair crews will be readily available to assist you upon arrival."

"That won't be necessary," Fett said, "Any repairs I need I will conduct myself."

There was a beat of silence. Tinari's eyes jumped from the Star Destroyer to the planet and back, her hands still tight over her mouth. They were finally granted an answer.

"As you wish, sir. You may proceed."

Tinari let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding once she was certain Boba Fett had turned off the comlink. He gripped the controls as Coruscant grew larger in the forward viewport.

"You need to be calmer than that."

"I'm scared!!" Tinari wailed indignantly.

Fett shook his head. "It Doesn't matter. You can't let them see it. Turn all that fear into energy." He took a moment, as if debating something. "…My father would always tell me that."

Tinari folded her arms tight around herself to keep from shivering. Fear into energy. It seemed to make some sense, even if she didn't know how to do such a thing. She let out a weary sigh, wincing every now and then as she caught a glimpse of the TIE-fighters flying on either side of them.

"It works," Fett spoke up.

Tinari hugged her knees up to her chest, wanting to believe him. _Slave I_ suddenly pitched forward as it broke into the atmosphere of Coruscant. The harness held as Tinari flew toward the control panel. She watched as flames appeared and pressed against the ship; the shields flared a bright blue from the force. There came a strange rumbling sound and one of the alarms shrieked.

"What's that flashing?!" Tinari demanded, pointing to the panel.

Fett silenced the wails with a punch of a few buttons, pushing her hand away.

"The wing," he said.

"Is it bad?!"

Fett gripped the controls tighter. "It's been worse. We'll be fine."

The clouds suddenly parted before them and Tinari was granted her fist look at the city planet of Coruscant. She had never seen any place so populous, so teeming with life and activity. Several starships zoomed around _Slave I_ and the two TIE-fighters as they headed for the nearest landing platform. Though the sky was overcast, the sun had poked out from behind the clouds, flashing across the windows of several skyscrapers. Everything was so technological; streamlined yet somehow sterile.

Tinari gazed open-mouthed at the city, which stretched as far as she could see, her fear now forgotten. She was finally snapped from her daze by the fact the ship was tilting. The TIE-fighters hovered above them as _Slave I_ began its decent; Tinari yelped as the ship continued its journey. Soon she was flat on her back, staring out the viewport at the sky, watching as the two fighters banked right and disappeared into the clouds. _Slave I_ set down with a shudder and the engines hissed as they came to a stop. The lights in the cockpit went out, save for a few mounted on the bulkheads. Tinari wrinkled her nose and unfastened the harness from around her. She pulled herself up to look out the viewport, standing on the armrest of her chair.

"Where are the trees?" she asked, struggling to keep her balance.

"There are none. Only holograms," Boba Fett replied.

Tinari frowned. "There _have_ to be trees," she mumbled.

Fett caught her under both arms just as her boots slipped from the chair, and set her safely down on the floor. She smiled apologetically at him. He left to head for the cargo hold and she followed, slinging her satchel over her shoulder. After a moment of disorientation due to the fact the ship was in a different position, she caught up with him. A sudden realization came to her as her eyes fixed on the bars of the cage she had been kept in: this would be the last time she saw _Slave I_. It almost made her sad, in a way. She leaned against her cage and frowned.

"Boba Fett-"

He cut her sentence short, holding something out to her. Tinari took it in her hands, realizing it was an old cloak. The fabric felt rough beneath her palms. Fett spoke before she could ask.

"Put it on. You need to be hard to recognize; people are still looking for you."

She made face. He ignored her, moving to attach his jetpack to the new torso armor as Tinari pulled the cloak over herself. It was fairly long, hanging to her knees, dark brown in color. She flapped the sleeves and snickered.

"I look like a Jedi or something."

Boba Fett took a glance at her. "Let's hope not."

Tinari appeared confused as he stepped up to her, inspecting her disguise. He pulled it tighter around her shoulders, fastening the collar. He tugged the hood over her head, but she resisted.

"Wear it," he cautioned.

She heaved a sigh as Fett purposefully yanked the hood over her eyes. He straightened back up, ignoring the fact Tinari had stuck her tongue out at him. She adjusted the strap of her satchel, following Fett toward the exit. She scurried to stand beside him, fiddling with the hood.

"Remind me," Fett said, "What did you promise?"

"Not to wander off," Tinari answered, scratching a spot on her cheek.

Fett nodded. "Very good."

He hit the switch on the wall with his palm and cracks of light burst into view along the floor. Tinari squinted in the glare as she watched the bounty hunter walk down the ramp ahead of her. This time she was quick to follow him.

A strong breeze snapped at her clothes and she pulled the hood tighter around her face, though she could still see the towering structures that surrounded them. The air smelled crisp and was oddly cold. Hundreds of vehicles zoomed above and below the landing platforms, each one in a flash of different colors. Dark clouds had gathered, causing the buildings to stand out as stark white contrasts to the skyline. Spires and towers stretched through the clouds. Tinari had never seen anything so tall. Boba Fett left her at the end of the ramp, walking over to the ship's left wing to inspect the damage. She watched him somewhat anxiously, feeling very small amidst all the activity of the city. Once Fett had finished assessing the wing he came back over to her, lightly pushing her along.

As Tinari followed him through the outdoor landing areas, she looked over her shoulder. The strange pang of sadness returned as a thin ray of sunlight glinted off of the curved viewport of _Slave I_. Fett suddenly pulled her behind him and Tinari stumbled before matching his pace again.

"What's-?"

Words failed her as the familiar white figures of two Stormtroopers came walking toward them. Tinari bit her lip and bowed her head, watching Boba Fett's boots. She could hear the troopers stomping closer and squeezed her eyes shut; the sound was forever ingrained in her memory. Fear crept its way through all through her body and her vision blurred with sudden tears. She could still remember how loud the boot stomps had sounded the night they came, how tightly her father had embraced her before he left to meet them…

_Turn your fear into energy._

Boba Fett's words suddenly flashed into her thoughts, and she opened her eyes. Tinari knew she would get to see her mother again, and her brother; maybe even her father. But not if she gave herself away. Sucking in a breath, she straightened up, fixing her gaze ahead.

The troopers walked past them.

Boba Fett pulled her back to walk beside him as they went and Tinari slowly puffed out the breath she'd been holding. To her surprise, Fett patted her once on the head.

"Much better," he said.

Tinari managed a grin. Her heart was throbbing against her chest and her stomach was tightened into a knot, but she felt more exhilarated than scared- almost energized. Now somewhat at ease, she fell in stride with Fett, focusing on the city around them more than the fear that threatened to seize her senses yet again. Daring to peek over the railing they walked alongside, Tinari's eyes widened in amazement. The buildings, walkways and vehicles all spiraled and stretched far below, farther than she could see. Squinting in effort to find a ground level, she asked,

"Do we have to go down there?"

Boba Fett pulled her back from the railing just before she could walk straight into a pilot traveling in the opposite direction.

"Yes," said the bounty hunter, "I'm not going to find what I'm looking for up here."

He knew Coruscant was designed in levels; the highest platforms and buildings were reserved for those with a great amount of wealth. The farther down one travelled the less sophisticated and sanitary the environment became. Unfortunately, where Fett was headed happened to be all the more dangerous as well. Because too many crimes happened daily for the Empire to properly arrest criminals in certain districts, they had given up policing the ground levels. Though there would be less Stormtroopers for him to worry about…

By the time they reached a turbo lift, the clouds had darkened considerably and warned of rain; Tinari wrinkled her nose at the humidity in the air as they stepped through the threshold. The doors closed with a loud snap. She gazed around them and watched as the turbo lift descended into the lower levels of Coruscant.

"What's down here?" she wanted to know.

"The working class sector and part of the entertainment district. Stay close; there will be a lot more people here."

Tinari nodded in agreement as the turbo lift came to a sudden stop. With a small sigh she followed Fett out into the next sector.

Several holoscreens flashed repeatedly above with blinding colors and images. She gazed up at them in wonder, the lights reflecting in her eyes. Each sign blazed like a beacon against the shadowy sky. Citizens on Coruscant seemed to look very tired; several different beings walked alongside humans within the crowd, many of which Tinari had never seen before. Stormtroopers strode along with rifles slung over their shoulders; people moved out of their way to give them space. Fett made sure to keep his distance.

Noises of all kinds rattled in Tinari's ears, from the chatter of multiple languages to the high-pitched whine of the airspeeders and taxis above. Store windows glistened in the glare of the advertizing signs and tough-looking shopkeepers stood outside their buildings smoking crumbling cigarras. Tinari quickly avoided their hard gaze and bumped against Boba Fett as he led her through the crowd. She went to grab his hand, but thought better of it. A sudden rumble of thunder momentarily blotted out the din of the city; Tinari winced at a sudden awareness.

"What happens if it rains?"

"We get wet," answered Fett.

The crowd had surged around them slightly after the thunder rolled away. Fett placed a hand on Tinari's shoulder as they walked. She reached up to grab his fingers and flinched at a second crack of thunder, more threatening than the last. Boba Fett's grip tightened on her shoulder almost reassuringly. They continued onward through the crowd as lightening flickered across the dark sky. Tinari started as a sudden droplet of water hit her on the nose. Rain slowly began to fall; the bright billboards glowed blurrily in the mist. Fett headed for a small building up ahead, and Tinari squinted through the haze up at the flickering blood-red sign. Stamped in simple letters were the words: **The Black Hole**. Fett stopped just before they could head inside, checking the placement of his weapons. He glanced down at Tinari and she pulled the cloak's hood over her eyes. Grabbing her by the shoulder, he pushed open the door to the pub without hesitation.

They were at once greeted by a loud volley of noise from the house band, playing noisily in the corner off to their left. Tinari watched as the group swayed while they performed. The aged floor panels trembled beneath their boots as the song went on, the small crowd cheering as the band sang. Fett's helmet automatically muted the music to a more tolerable listening level, though he could see Tinari wincing at the volume. The bass tones rumbled in his chest as he led her through the crowded saloon, making sure to keep her in sight.

A dense haze of blue-grey smoke hung thick in the air, muting the yellow lights above. Raucous laughter sounded through the blare of the band; several sabacc tables surrounded them, all crowded with beings hoping to win something for their trouble. Waitresses weaved from table to table, dressed in scanty uniforms. A few of them took notice of Fett and moved quickly out of his path. With Tinari following at his heels, he headed for the circular table at the back of the room, just to the right of the bar. He could feel eyes upon him as he walked.

A game of sabacc had just ended, each of the participants sliding back from the table to stagger to their feet. Nearly all of them were shaking their heads as they made their way to the bar for a drink. Only one man was left sitting at the table, pulling the credit chips from the center toward his chest. He counted them quickly and eagerly, a smirk tugging at his lips.

Boba Fett stepped up to the table and stopped, crossing his arms. Tinari watched the band play over her shoulder. Fett waited patiently as the man looked up from his credits to address him. His smug smirk widened into a smile.

"Well, well. Look who it is," the man laughed, "I didn't think I'd ever see _you_ again."

"Spare me, Dyre," Fett warned him.

The card player grinned, leaning back in his seat as the bounty hunter sank into one of the empty chairs surrounding the table. He pointed to a second chair beside him and Tinari scurried to sit there. Dyre watched her and arched an eyebrow before turning back to his visitor.

"So what brings the 'Great Boba Fett' to The Black Hole? I don't think you came just to hear The Blasters play."

Dyre jerked his head toward the band, still performing the peculiar romp that reverberated off the walls. Fett gave a slight shake of his head.

"Hardly. I require transportation."

Dyre couldn't help laughing, rocking back in his chair. He ran a hand through his spiked blond hair and shook his head. Fett stared at him.

"That's really funny, Fett. Didn't know you had a sense of humor."

"A speeder bike would suffice."

The smile finally faded from the young man's face as the band came tumbling to a stop behind them; the audience clapped and whistled. Tinari sighed somewhat restlessly beside Fett, who remained immobile, his arms still crossed over his chest. Dyre leaned forward, placing both hands on the table.

"You're serious."

"My patience is limited," Fett reminded him.

Dyre smirked. "Of course." He paused to wave for one of the waitresses, holding up his empty glass. "Bring me a couple more of these and a non-alcoholic drink for our little lady friend, would you, dear?"

The waitress nodded, heels clicking rapidly as she left them. Dyre turned his attention back to Fett, sipping the last of his liquor.

"Is the littl'un your new partner or what?" he asked, laughing into his glass.

Tinari scowled; Fett tilted his head slightly, as if looking at the other man crookedly. He didn't grant Dyre an answer as the waitress returned with their drinks. Fett ignored the action, though Tinari's head jerked up. She reached for the glass, which contained a sugary ice-filled liquid. Fett grasped the top with his fingers and slid it away from her. As she whined softly in protest, he spoke.

"I do not have time for this, Dyre. I shouldn't have to remind you that the only reason you're able to sit there with all those credits is because of me. To put it in simple terms, you'll be paying off your debt right now."

The young man narrowed his eyes and took another sip of his drink, seemingly unfazed. However, his hand was shaking as he set the glass back down. He looked back into Fett's visored gaze through his bangs.

"Where are you headed, provided I give you said transportation?"

"The Orange District," answered Fett.

Dyre scoffed. "Debt or no debt, I'm not letting you _or_ your Jawa take any of my speeders that far, for free."

"Hey!" Tinari cried indignantly, obviously insulted.

Boba Fett leaned back in his chair. Tinari folded her arms and looked away irritably, back to watching the band set up behind them.

"I thought you would ask for payment," said Fett.

Dyre smirked and spread his arms. "You know me."

"Yes…unfortunately I do." The bounty hunter paused, bringing his right hand up to rest on the table. He clenched a black blaster tightly in his fist. Both Tinari and Dyre gasped quietly.

"Now wait a second, Fett-"

"This is my offer," he said, "Take it…or leave it."

The other man fidgeted, his mouth moving wordlessly up and own. Tinari's face had gone pale as she watched them, wide-eyed. Fett stared back at Dyre, his finger nearly pressed all the way upon the trigger. It would only take a simple movement to silence the card player forever. The conversations around them sounded louder; a few waitresses giggled somewhere behind them, glasses clinked together and the band geared up for another song, plunking out practice sounds on their instruments. Dyre flinched as Fett flicked up the barrel of the blaster, throwing out his hands as if they could stop a bolt.

"All right! Okay…I'll see what I can do," he stammered.

Boba Fett tipped his head in a nod of approval, though the blaster remained fixed on Dyre's head. Tinari watched on silently, chewing on her lip. Dyre leaned back in his seat and took one last sip of his drink before heaving a sigh. With a hesitant glance at the blaster, he said,

"Let me show you what we've got out back."

"I'd be thrilled," Fett replied, the faintest trace of sarcasm in his voice.

Dyre pushed himself from his chair, pocketing his credit chips hurriedly before leading the bounty hunter and the girl away from the table. Fett still kept the blaster aimed at Dyre's back, steering Tinari along with his free hand. Music came rumbling through the air once again and several patrons cheered. Dyre stopped at a durasteel door marked with black lettering, fishing through his pockets for a key. Once the door slid aside, he stepped across the threshold and faded into he shadows outside.

Boba Fett's helmet automatically adjusted to the lighting, though he had to prevent Tinari from walking into a few trash bins. Dyre had stopped to face them and smirked. He swept his arm dramatically around the alley around them.

"Here you are, _sir_. I assume you're picking your own?"

His tone dripped sarcasm, though Fett took no notice.

"You assume correctly," he told him.

Fett stepped further into the alley to inspect the long row of vehicles that lined the entire left wall. The door to the pub closed with a snap behind him, muffling the racket of the band. Dyre buried his hands in his pockets and followed alongside the bounty hunter.

"You've done quite well for yourself, considering," Fett remarked.

Dyre couldn't help grinning. "Well, surviving a partnership with you makes a guy pretty popular."

Fett chose not to reply. He knew what Dyre had been up to- or had at least heard enough. The line of vehicles he was now inspecting spoke for themselves; the young card player had made a name for himself providing transportation for several creatures who weren't necessarily 'favored' by the Empire. Criminals, spies, traitors; it didn't matter to Dyre as long as they paid him well enough.

"So where'd you get the kid?" he asked, gesturing to Tinari with his shoulder.

Fett knelt in front of a dark blue speeder bike to inspect the engines. Tinari edged close to him as Dyre spoke again.

"She's not yours, is she?" he laughed.

Fett straightened up. "No. it doesn't matter who she is- not to you." He pointed at the speeder bike. "This one will do."

Dyre nodded in agreement. "She'll get you where you need to go. Make sure you bring 'er back in one piece."

Boba Fett picked up Tinari and held her with one arm as he turned to sling his leg over the speeder. Carefully, he set her down in front of him.

"I can't promise you anything."

Dyre's expression fell. He watched with growing worry as Fett started up the bike. The misty rain was caught fully in the headlights. Tinari moved to touch something on the console, but Fett grabbed her wrist.

"You aren't going to pay me- that I _suppose_ I understand," Dyre began, "But I don't see how stealing my bike fits into all this! I got a business to run, Fett!"

The bounty hunter leaned forward to grab one of the handle bars, turning his helmeted gaze back to his one-time partner. He brought his other hand around and once again pointed the blaster at the young card player.

"Then this should be familiar to you," Fett told him, "If memory serves, we've parted ways similarly before, and all in the interest of business."

Dyre held out his palms in a gesture of surrender, though he appeared angry rather than pleading.

"Yeah. I remember," he spat.

"Good. Then you shouldn't feel cheated."

Still keeping the blaster trained on him, Boba Fett twisted the hand accelerator on the speeder bike. The vehicle shot forward with a whine, and soon arched from the alley into the glittering skies of Coruscant.


	9. Crossfire

The rain had intensified as Fett guided the speeder bike through traffic. Tinari leaned back against him, eyes bouncing from one vehicle or billboard to another. She was quite fearful of falling in spite of the fact he had reassured her she was perfectly safe. She had latched on to one of his forearms as he drove; her grip was surprisingly strong.

Droplets had beaded onto the visor of the Mandalorian helmet, though Fett could still see where he was going. They had traveled far enough down through Coruscant that the bright amber lights of the Orange District illuminated them from below. It was the lowest level of the planet, a place where criminals, traitors and revolutionaries roamed freely, lit in eerie orange light. Fett had heard plenty of stories about the place, including the fact that the Senate had attempted to replace the orange lights with the standard, but the inhabitants would always find ways to revert back to the old light. Mystery and danger surrounded the place; it was somewhere Fett would have preferred not to take a child, though he didn't have a choice.

The speeder whined as he dove into the lower lane, heading closer to the district. Tinari yelped and squeezed his arm tighter as the bike leveled out, sliding into the line of other vehicles. Fett was surprised that the bike was performing quite well; it appeared he'd chosen the right vehicle.

Fat rain drops splattered on to his armor once he stopped the speeder bike as traffic slowed. Tinari turned to look up at him miserably as the rain fell, splashing on to her cheeks. Thunder rumbled and the speeder trembled slightly.

"We don't have far to go, Tinari."

She sighed and leaned against him, waiting for the traffic to change. She had let go of his arm, though clutched the front part of the seat tightly in one hand.

"I hate this," she declared, wrinkling her nose as rain thudded down on her.

Boba Fett turned to gaze out at the city surrounding them, briefly watching other vehicles shoot past them in colorful blurs. He'd been to Coruscant several times in the past, but something didn't quite feel right. Experience had taught him to be weary of things that worked too well or felt too easy. It was one of the first things he'd learned as a bounty hunter and something his father had taught him as a child. Shadows flashed over them as vehicles passed; Tinari gave a start as Fett wrapped his arm around her protectively.

"What's wrong?"

"Hold on tight."

Tinari yelped as he yanked the speeder bike back to normal speed, diving from the traffic lane. She watched as fiery orange blaster bolts spat through the sky above them, just mere feet from where they had been. Lightning streaked across the dark clouds above them and thunder boomed soon after.

"Watch out!!"

Tinari's cry went unheard as Boba Fett weaved in between other airspeeders, nearly hitting them. The wind roared all around them and Fett snatched a fistful of cloak to keep Tinari from flying out of the seat. He pulled her back to him and she latched herself back on to his arm. Colors blurred into continuous strips of light; thunder crackled once more and they could feel the vibrations shimmer through the speeder. Blaster bolts suddenly struck the back end of their bike; Fett whirled around and Tinari did the same, her eyes wide with fear.

A woman rider was still following them on a bike of her own, jet black hair snapping out behind her in the wind. She fired again, propping the barrel of her slender rifle up on the control panel. Bolts streaked past them, two of which narrowly missed Boba Fett's head. Tinari shrieked.

"Stay still!" he ordered.

Lighting flickered, illuminating her terrified face. Fett yanked the speeder into a hard right and the cityscape blurred. The world seemed to tilt as the vehicle complied, emitting a sharp whine as it went. Behind them, the woman gave chase, falling into a steep dive in order to follow.

Tinari's head cracked painfully against Boba Fett's armor. He pulled her back into his lap and pulled out of the sharp turn only to make another maneuver in the opposite direction. She struggled to right herself, grasping hold of his shoulders. She twisted around to look up at Fett, who was still driving wildly, though emotionless as ever. Tinari gasped sharply and frantically pointed across him.

"Look out!!"

Fett turned in time to watch as a second speeder bike came flying in from the shadows to drive alongside them. He barely realized a man was riding the speeder just before he slammed into them. Tinari screamed as she lost her grip around the bounty hunter. Fett lunged to snatch her wrist and managed to catch her in time. He heaved her back up into his lap just before they were rammed again. Another blaster bolt flashed, melting a hole in the dashboard. Fett slammed the emergency brakes before they could be hit a third time; the bounty hunter heaved his speeder bike into the opposite traffic lane, narrowly avoiding a head-on collision with several airships.

Tinari was sobbing as he wrestled to keep from hitting other vehicles. Behind them, the woman was still perusing. Brilliant red-orange tracers lit up the sky and thudded into the back end of the airspeeder yet again. One of them struck Fett in the shoulder; he growled at the hot pain, holding the spot. It was enough time for the woman to make her move. Tinari struggled to see over his shoulder. She screeched for his attention, but it was too late.

With another round of blaster bolts, the speeder controls grew immensely heavy in Fett's hands. He strained to pull out of the dive, but couldn't. Alarms were shrieking several warnings as they fell; smoke was coiling from the back end of the bike and curled into his vision. A flourish of sparks signaled the thruster engine had been completely blown out. He steered out of the traffic lanes and headed for a deserted platform, knowing he had only seconds to calculate his crash landing. If he couldn't do it right, they would be dead. With as much effort as he could muster, Fett pulled the controls up and the vehicle leveled out. He grabbed Tinari tight and braced for the collision.

The speeder hit the platform hard. Sparks burst into sight and a trail of durasteel scraped harshly against the durasteel panels of the walkway, leaving behind chunks of shrapnel. Boba Fett was thrown from the seat, falling heavily to the platform with a grunt. Tinari was been torn from his grasp and landed ahead of him, rolling a few times before finally coming to a stop, her back to him. For a moment, there was only silence as Fett watched her, the rain pattering on to his helmet. She didn't move.

"Tinari?"

Fett pushed himself to his feet and jogged up to her, boots squeaking on the panels below. He found that his heart was racing and his stomach felt as though a fist had clenched it as he knelt beside her. The girl's eyes were closed and her hood had fallen to her shoulders, allowing rain drops to pool on her cheek. Fett grasped her shoulder, but Tinari remained immobile. A strange fear had gripped him, one that was not motivated by the loss of credits or even his reputation…

Before he could move to help her, a blaster round burned a hole in the grating off to his right.

"Don't move," warned a rough female voice, "or the next one hits you in the head."

Boba Fett grudgingly did as he was told, his arms hanging at his sides. He heard approaching footfalls and instinctively tensed. With a single blink, the heads up display of his helmet was activated, and he was able to see who was holding him at gunpoint. Behind him, a woman walked toward him, a rifle pointed unwavering at his head. She was tall and incredibly thin, her flat black hair obscuring half of her face. Even her tight black slacks looked somewhat baggy on her frame.

"You sure find a way to make this job interesting, Fett," the woman remarked with a smirk.

He watched in the HUD as another speeder appeared behind them and a man slid from the seat on to the walkway, hurriedly jogging up to the woman. A blaster pistol was clenched in his hand.

_Hunt saboteurs_.

He should have known better.

The man's eyes settled on Fett and Tinari and he shook his head slightly, cursing.

"She better not be dead," he muttered.

Fett's eyes narrowed beneath his helmet as the man walked into view, crouching beside Tinari. As soon as his hand closed around her little wrist to check her pulse, Fett twitched. He had to consciously stop himself from attacking the man for touching her. The movement was enough for the woman to jam the barrel of her rifle against the back of his head.

"Watch it. Another slip like that and you're dead."

He said nothing, just watching silently as the man continued to check over Tinari.

"That brat you've been dragging around is plenty worth it, though."

The man spoke. "She's okay- looks like she's been knocked out."

Boba Fett felt relief for mere seconds before a surge of anger replaced it as he watched the hunt saboteur pick up Tinari in his arms. The rain had now reached a steady downpour, thudding on to the shoulder plates of his armor and gathering in large puddles on the walkway. A rifle barrel nudged Fett in the back and he rose to his feet, silently fighting every instinct he had to shoot both saboteurs for having the audacity to try and steal something from him.

"Thanks, Fett," the woman told him with mock politeness, "You've been very helpful. Eli and I will be on our way, and so will you." She circled around in front of him, still holding the rifle tight. "Get your arms up and start walking."

He just stared at her, watching as her eyes blazed with a peculiar combination of hatred and triumph. She was clearly enjoying holding him at gunpoint, carefully shaking the pin-straight hair from her vision. It was then Fett recognized her.

"Something to say before we take the youngling off your hands?" she asked him.

It took effort to keep the anger from his voice. "You are not taking that child, Sika. And you aren't going to kill me, either," Fett promised her.

A smirk stretched her thin, colorless lips. "I thought you might say something like that. So I came prepared."

At her words, several figures revealed themselves from the shadows, gathering behind the two hunt saboteurs in a small crowd. Each leveled a weapon at Boba Fett. Lighting flickered, illuminating the walkway in a ghostly light. The woman named Sika gestured with her rifle, smiling what was meant to be a sweet smile.

"Get to walking."

A quick scan of the group told Fett that using his jetpack would not work; they were all ready to fire and looked as though they were set on killing him, should the opportunity arise. But he wasn't out of ideas yet.

Slowly, he began to back pedal toward the edge of the platform, past the wreckage of Dyre's loaned speeder. The rain pounded down upon him and thunder roared above. Tinari was beginning to stir in Eli's arms, and he shifted her in his grip, managing to aim his blaster at Fett. Sika led the group in the slow march, a malicious grin across her face.

"I wasn't aware you were so generous," said Boba Fett.

She scowled. "What are you talking about?"

He gave a slight shrug as he continued to walk backward. Confirmation lights flashed across his vision inside the helmet. A small chronometer appeared in the lower corner, scrolling down a time limit.

"I'm merely surprised," he continued, "One hundred and fifty thousand credits split ten ways- that's not enough for your trouble. I heard you were notorious for being selfish."

"They raised the bounty on the little brat to two-hundred and fifty thousand. Not a bad amount in the end." Sika paused to grin at him. "Besides, I knew I couldn't take her from you without a little help. I mentioned going after Boba Fett and people jumped at the chance. You make friends wherever you go, don't you?"

He didn't grant her an answer. For a moment, there was silence, broken only by the constant pounding of the torrent of rain. Fett took one more step and his heel slipped over the edge of the platform. The lights of the Orange District illuminated him eerily from below. His cape snapped out behind him in a strong breeze.

"Hands up," Sika demanded.

Fett slowly, almost reluctantly, did so. The timer at the corner of his vision was almost to zero. Sika tilted her head and squinted at him through the rain.

"It will be so much fun taking her up to the Imperial Palace. I thank you again, Boba Fett. Anything you'd like to say before we part ways?"

"You have something I want. And I'm gong to take it back from you." A red light flashed inside the helmet, blinking urgently. "Right now."

Sika laughed as lighting flashed. "Is that right?"

Boba Fett tipped his head forward in a single nod. The light in the helmet's display turned abruptly to green. He watched at the female hunt saboteur shook her head and leveled her rifle higher.

"Arrogant to 'til the end."

Her finger tightened on the trigger, but the sudden, unmistakable thundering of Kuat Drive Yard thruster engines directed her gaze skyward. What started as a faint drone suddenly became a blaring roar as a _Firespray-31-class_ star ship appeared from the bustling skies of Coruscant to hover above the platform crowded with hunt saboteurs. They all gaped up at the ship in disbelief, collectively taking a step back.

But it was too late for escape.

_Slave I _burst to life, multiple laser cannons thudding scarlet bolts into the walkway with deadly precision. Sika screeched incoherent orders as the ship fired upon her men. Boba Fett, illuminated by the brilliant flashes from each cannon, sprang into action. Laser fire roared all around him, shooting charred scraps of the platform into the air. Fett headed straight for Eli, who was still holding the unconscious Tinari. Sika's group of mercenaries were sent sprawling as the panels heaved beneath them. Fett ducked as a large piece of shrapnel sailed over his head, pumping his legs faster as the durasteel began to buckle under his boots. Something exploded off to his left and he ran faster, ignoring the plume of flames and the following screams.

The HUD displayed the computer data screens for _Slave I_ and he could see himself running up the platform. He directed fire to the support beams with a verbal command. The walkway shuddered violently from the impact and he was nearly thrown from his feet.

"Boba Fett!!"

The scream was Tinari's. He jerked his head up and saw her ahead, still slumped over Eli's shoulder. Her arms were stretched out toward the bounty hunter in desperation. Shrapnel was flying all around them and _Slave I_'s cannons were still thudding into platform ahead of them, throwing the mercenaries from their feet like ragdolls. Several of them fell over the side of the platform and were gone from sight. Fett heard the shriek of metal and the ground lurched upward beneath him, throwing him into the air. He landed on his feet once again and kept running.

Eli was not so fortunate. He flew through the air, and Tinari was wrenched from his grip. Fett extended his arm and a fibercord whip shot from the end of his right wrist gauntlet. It wrapped tightly around Tinari's shoulders before she fell back to the platform heavily. Fett pulled, and she started sliding toward him as Eli landed ahead of her, trying to regain his footing. Tinari had wrapped her arms over her head to protect herself from the flying debris. Another explosion caused the walkway to heave once again; Eli was struck hard by the shrapnel and fell back out of sight.

"FETT!!" screeched a voice.

He turned to look over at Sika, who had braced herself against a railing, the rifle pointed for his head once again.

"Give me that child!" she howled.

Boba Fett hoisted Tinari into his arms. She hugged him around the neck and buried her face in his chest. The platform screeched threateningly and buckled once again. _Slave I_ still hovered above them, the canons now mercifully silent. The thruster engines thudded threateningly in their ears. Sika glowered, her hair snapping wildly behind her, her face streaked with blood and ash.

"I'm going to _kill_ you!" she screamed.

Fett shook his head. Tinari tightened her grip around him.

"Wrong again."

_Slave I _launched the fatal salvo at his words. The missile struck the last support beam of the platform and exploded in a brilliant yellow-orange fireball. Shrapnel burst in all directions as the flames billowed up into the sky. Fett braced himself and activated the thrusters on his jetpack. Just as his boots left the walkway, it collapsed with one final piercing shriek and fell several stories into the Orange District below. Tinari finally revealed her face as Fett guided the jetpack up to be level with his ship. She stared at their tiny reflection in the curved glass of the forward viewport, her fear now subsiding.

"Are we safe now?"

Tinari looked up at the bounty hunter and he laid his hand on top of her head.

"Yes," said Boba Fett, "We are."


	10. Us and Them

**Author's note: This marks the second-to-last chapter. I almost can't believe it…This chapter is one of my favorites, so I hope you all enjoy it! Happy reading. :D**

They had seen everything, crouched in the alcoves lining the narrow streets of Coruscant's ground level. The group was six men strong, just enough to patrol the territory, but not enough to deal with whatever had caused the explosion. They huddled in the alcoves for protection, squinting through the rain up at the chaos above. No one knew what to make of the attack, but one had a theory of his own.

He stared up at the ruins of the platform a few blocks away clenching his rifle tight, blinking droplets out of his eyes. His heart was thudding against his chest at a sudden realization.

That was Boba Fett's ship. That was _Slave I_.

He could have pointed it out amidst thousands of other ships in the sky; he had trained himself to look for it, hoping someday he would get a chance to at least catch a glimpse of it. All the stories he'd heard both from his father to and listening to former bounty hunters, told him enough.

"What's the ETA on reinforcements?"

The Captain's voice snapped him from his reverie and he straightened up.

"Three minutes, sir," he replied.

"Good. Let's get just a bit closer, then."

The squad moved from the alcoves back into the streets, trudging through the water as they went. The young man lifted his gaze to the sky once again and watched as _Slave I_ banked left and disappeared back into the darkness. Thick smoke soon obscured his vision and he tried to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat. For the first time in his life, meeting his hero didn't quite sit well with him…

******

Once he was sure his ship was returning to its correct destination, Boba Fett carefully let his jetpack power down. He and Tinari slowly made their way to solid ground, fully bathed in the strange amber glow of the Orange District. Fett scanned the area using the rangefinder on his helmet as he walked along cautiously, still holding Tinari with one arm. She squinted in the bright light, shaking the slick hair from her eyes. Fett finally set her down once he'd finished scanning for any immediate danger and knelt to her level.

"Are you hurt?"

Tinari sniffled, running her hands through her tangled hair, patting her chest for wounds.

"My shoulder hurts, but I think I'm okay…"

Her voice was weak and quivering. Fett looked at her for a moment before straightening up. She seized his hand.

"Why couldn't we have gone back on the ship? I don't like it here."

In another situation, Fett might have laughed. He'd never heard anyone say they wished to return to _Slave I_. Tinari was shaking; her hand visibly trembled in his. She edged closer to him as he looked around, listening. Lighting flickered, though it was barely discernable through the glaring orange lights. The torrent had caused the streets to flood, and the water was up to his ankles as he stood there. Thunder rumbled and Tinari jumped, looking over her shoulder. Fett released her hand to grab hold of his blaster rifle, but she ran around to his left side and grabbed his free hand tightly. Together, they began walking, Tinari inadvertently splashing through puddles as she went. The water they trod through was already filthy, even though it was only from the rain.

Huge buildings lay uninhabited around them, their windows dark and broken. The ground was littered with trash and rodent-like creatures rummaged through the waste for food. They scurried into the shadows as Fett and Tinari approached.

"There's no one here," the latter remarked, wiping water from her cheeks.

Fett knew even the Orange District was crowded. To see nothing in the streets, even during a downpour, was odd. They passed the pile of twisted and distorted wreckage caused by _Slave I_, smoke pouring from the scorched walkway despite the rain. Tinari whimpered and squeezed Fett's hand so tightly it almost hurt.

"I saw something," she hissed, "Something strange in the alley."

Fett stopped, turning his head to gaze toward the place she'd seen movement. Nothing was there, though his suspicion had been triggered.

"Keep moving."

Tinari nodded, falling into step beside him. She gazed around, her teeth chattering. They traveled in silence through the torrent, continuing to slosh through the filthy puddles until Fett's rangefinder suddenly burst to life; several images sprang into view across the helmet's visor and numbers flashed, signaling something was closing in fast. He pulled Tinari behind him and braced himself, pointing his rifle forward. Just as before, several figures materialized from alleyways, hurrying to rush toward Fett with rifles drawn.

They wore strange uniforms, dark in color with no visible insignia. Black ponchos hung from their shoulders and short-wedged helmets of the same color covered their heads. The heads up display blinked to life once again in his helmet and Fett could see another group press in tightly to his left. He knew without a doubt these men were part of the Rebel Alliance.

"Stay where you are," a clear voice shouted over the rain, "Don't move."

Fett kept his rifle trained on the men in front of him. Tinari snatched a fistful of his cape in her fingers and whimpered.

"Lay down your weapons," was the second order.

Fett did not respond.

"Lay down your weapons, or we will fire upon you."

Tinari gasped from behind him. Before he could stop her, she ran in front of him and threw up her arms. The line of men tensed, though they did not aim their rifles at her.

"No! Don't shoot him," she cried, "He's my friend; he saved me!!"

Fett went to grab Tinari and bring her back to him, but all of the Rebels clicked off the safety switches of their rifles and he halted his action. There was movement to his left and he noticed one of them had lowered his weapon. He took a step forward, and Fett could see him clearly in the orange light; he was a young boy, a teenager at the most. His eyes were wide in disbelief beneath the helmet.

"Tinari?!" he shouted, his voice muted by the rain.

The girl turned to face him, recognition in her eyes.

"Tory?!"

Fett watched as the boy clumsily shouldered his rifle and went to meet her. One of the soldiers stopped him and he struggled against him.

"That's my sister!! That's my little sister, get off me!"

"Tory!" Tinari squealed, grinning.

Fett snatched the back of her cloak before she could go anywhere. Slowly, he walked toward the group, raising one hand up in as a sign of peace. He let his blaster rifle hang loosely from his shoulder as he continued. Tinari squirmed excitedly in his grasp, trying to catch another glimpse of the boy. The Rebels still had their rifles trained on him as he stopped a few feet away; the teenager named Tory thrashed about in an attempt to reach his sister.

"I need to speak to the person in charge," Boba Fett told them.

"What business do you have with us?" one sneered.

"Important business."

The Rebels looked amongst themselves, clearly unsure of his request. Tinari's brother ceased his struggling to run up the line to one speak with one of them, a tall man with a thick moustache.

"Captain Raine, please. My sister...he has my baby sister…"

"We can't," he said, "It would be breach of protocol, Tory. How do we know he wasn't the cause of all that destruction? And you know she especially wouldn't want us to bring in a bounty hunter."

Fett tightened his grip on Tinari's shoulder, noting that the boy clearly was not in agreement with this fact. He watched as Tory strode closer to his commanding officer, rainwater pouring from the brim of his helmet.

"Sir, my sister has been missing for months. I thought she was _dead_, and you're telling me that you won't admit this man because it would be breach of protocol?!"

His voice cracked urgently as he pointed to Fett. He was silently impressed by the boy's audacity, watching as anger contorted his face. Tinari looked on as well, gazing up at Fett with a worried expression.

"I am _not_ going to argue with you, soldier," Raine hissed, "Get back in line."

Fett frowned as he observed the others edging toward the teen, as if ready to stop him from doing something.

Tory was seething. "No. _I'm_ not going to argue. You are going to let them pass right _now_!!" he bellowed.

What happened next was unexpected. Four rifles suddenly fired, the bright red bolts arching above them. Fett had to stop himself from reaching for his blaster; Tinari jumped in surprise. The Rebels moved away from Tory, as if they were afraid of him. He stood amidst them panting, his fingers curled into tight fists. He looked more shaken than angry, now, but Fett could tell he was still willing to argue further. Raine had an expression that resembled both fear and anger.

"…We'll take them with us," he said through gritted teeth.

The group of Rebels closed in around Fett and Tinari and they continued their trek through the Orange District, this time winding their way through several alleys. They still held their rifles pointed at the bounty hunter. Tory pushed ahead to the front of the group, staring at his boots. Tinari sighed, trying to see her where her brother was over the heads of the other soldiers.

The rain eventually slowed, due to the fact they had pressed through the alleys and were walking beneath long-since ruined billboards and lines of rusting scaffolding. Shadows darkened as they traveled and more of the rodent creatures squealed at the sight of the group, winding between their feet as they desperately scurried away. Tinari yelped and edged closer to Boba Fett. Ahead of them, Tory and the Captain had stopped by the side of a building. The latter shouldered his rifle to press his hand against one of the panels, revealing a hidden keypad. Raine punched in several passwords before replacing the patch. There was a beat of silence before the wall shuddered and slid aside with a heavy scrape of durasteel. The Rebels guided Fett inside.

Even with the automatic adjustment of his helmet, his eyes still had trouble correcting themselves from the absence of the orange light outside. He was nearly surprised by the amount of Rebels inside the hideout; they all stopped whatever they were doing to stare at the group walking past them. They were in a garage of some sort, and men and women -along with other creatures and droids- had all been repairing speeders before pausing. Tinari could only stare around them, squeezing the water from her hair. Fett watched as Tory ran ahead of the group, pulling the helmet and rain-soaked poncho over his head. He threw them aside on to a worktable and disappeared behind a twin pair of doors as Captain Raine stopped the group.

"Wait here. Tory's getting her," he barked.

Fett soon understood that his patience would be short with this man. He watched as he dismissed the other soldiers, simply staring at him.

"I should tell you our leader doesn't take well to bounty hunters," Raine informed him with an unpleasant smile.

"I'll cope," Fett answered.

Tory soon returned, practically bursting through the doors back into the garage. A large smile had lit up his face, taking away some of the sternness Fett had previously observed. A woman suddenly stepped into view behind him; a woman with long golden-red hair…

Tinari gasped so sharply, Fett turned to look down at her. She gazed up at him and beamed, her eyes dancing with amazement, elation and admiration all at once. Fett understood. He finally released her shoulder and watched as she sprinted away from him.

"Momma!!"

"Tinari?!"

She jumped into the woman's arms and seized her in a fierce embrace. Tory wrapped his arms around them both, hiding his face in her hair. The woman was wide-eyed, close to tears as she held Tinari close. She returned the embrace just as tightly, pressing kisses to her daughter's cheeks. Smoothing down her sopping hair, she whispered,

"Oh, _sweetheart_…you're so thin…" The woman continued to brush the hair from Tinari's eyes, sniffing back tears. She gasped softly. "What happened to your pretty face?"

Tinari giggled. "It's okay, Momma. They're just scars, now."

The woman laughed in quiet disbelief, exchanging looks with Tory. Tinari hugged her tight once again.

"I missed you so much," she said.

The woman kissed the side of her head. "And I missed you, too."

She gently set Tinari on the floor, checking her over instinctively for wounds as the little girl hugged her brother around the legs. Tory tugged teasingly on her ear and hoisted her up into his arms.

Boba Fett crossed arms over his chest and waited. Tinari's eyes focused back on him and she squirmed excitedly.

"Momma, look who brought me back!"

The woman's gaze finally fixed on him. Her smile faded at the sight of him, but she managed to retain her surprise. She glanced once over the Mandalorian armor, then her eyes somehow met his through the T-visor. Fett was momentarily surprised by the intensity of her gaze; it was as through she could actually see him beneath the helmet. He knew instantly that there was more to this woman than he'd assumed. Her eyes narrowed just slightly and Fett recognized the sudden feeling that gripped him. He hadn't encountered anyone like her in many years, but there was no doubt in his mind…

Every instinct told Boba Fett that he was standing in the presence of a Jedi.

"Bounty hunter," she quietly addressed him, "This is quite the unexpected visit."

Fett took a few steps toward her, watching Tinari smile at the fact her mother was talking to him. Tory swallowed hard and straightened up, staring at him. Fett could sense his eyes upon him, though the boy's gaze was not as strong as his mother's.

"I am Verana Luna," the woman told him.

Fett nodded to her. "You and I have matters to attend to, Verana."

She fixed him with a tight-lipped smile and returned his nod.

"Of course. Follow me."

She turned her back on him and he was relieved to not have her scrutinizing gaze boring into him. Tory fell into step beside her, though he looked at the bounty hunter over his shoulder. Fett remembered what had happened earlier with the bizarre weapons malfunction and wondered if the teen was a Jedi as well…

He followed the group behind the twin blast doors, automatically inspecting the room. It looked as though the Rebels had occupied what had once been a hotel of some sort; the normal entryways had been sealed off from the outside streets with permacrete and panels of durasteel to make it appear as a 'regular' building. They were now standing in the entrance hall of the former hotel, dimly lit by overhead lights. A small, non-functioning fountain separated a staircase in two, and several of the tables from the lobby had been set up to hold equipment and computers. Fett turned his gaze to see that several civilians were scattered around the hall, huddled together wearily or sleeping on cots and makeshift beds. Rebels were stationed at the computers or milling around on various tasks. Verana's voice caught Fett's attention.

"Tory, would you please take your sister to get clean clothing? Have the medical droid treat her for anything, as well."

She looked over at her son and smiled, bending down to kiss Tinari on the head. The teen's eyes flickered from her, to Fett and back.

"Mom…don't-"

"I'll be just fine, _adi'ka_. Tinari needs you right now. Please."

Tory bit his lip and nodded. He adjusted his grip on his little sister and carried her away, heading for a hallway off to their left. Tinari grinned and waved to Boba Fett from over Tory's shoulder. He turned back to Verana, who regarded him patiently, her hands clasped together in front of her.

"Let's not keep you waiting any longer."

Fett followed her across the room, making sure to match her pace. She headed up the staircase, nodding to the Rebels they passed. She was bothered by something; she looked calm and collected enough, but her eyes gave her away. Jedi couldn't hide everything, Fett knew.

What made the situation all the more confusing was the fact that Verana was vaguely familiar to him in some strange way, with her shoulder-length red hair and dark blue eyes. And the way she had addressed her children-Fett knew those were Mandalorian words.

Verana resembled her daughter more than her son; she dressed like a Rebel in a simple dark green tunic and grey slacks, complete with boots. Oddly enough, she wasn't wearing a blaster, though a utility belt was wrapped snugly around her waist.

"This way."

They had climbed to the third floor, which was still thickly carpeted. A thick layer of dust trailed along the walls where the latest occupants had not stepped. Verana presented a key card and a small computer panel scanned it. With a faint beep, the door slid aside to allow them passage. Verana stepped inside and Boba Fett followed, his hand tightening on the stock of his blaster rifle.

The room had at one time been something like a suite, though it was now cluttered with ammunition lockers and other items in various states of disrepair. Rebel uniforms lay in a heap off to the side, along with a pile of boots. Verana led Fett past the mess to where he could see a patch of light had fallen across the floor. A long desk stood to the left of a panoramic window, where one could see just above the Orange District. The rain had ceased and the amber lights had dimmed; a blood-red sunset could be seen through the cover of clouds and buildings. Verana faced him and let out a somewhat sheepish smile.

"I apologize for the state of things…I have been rather busy."

Fett took another glance at the disarray around them before turning back to her.

"So I see."

They stared at each other a moment. Verana moved to lean against her desk, kicking up small puffs of dust that caught the light. With a small sigh, she folded her arms; sunlight glinted briefly off of the gold band on one of her fingers. Her jaw was set firmly, though her eyes focused on anything but Fett.

"I suppose you want to get right down to it…" she began.

"Yes. You owe me two hundred and fifty thousand credits."

Verana nodded. "Certainly. I suppose what you have done warrants that much."

She straightened up, moving to walk away from the desk. Framed by the window, she looked almost 'soft' in the crimson glow coming from outside. Her voice was very quiet, as if she was working to control it. Fett silently recognized her accent as being from the Outer Rim. It too, was familiar.

"But I have a question for you," she said.

"And that would be?"

Verana finally looked at him, and he could practically see her eyes flash with anger.

"Why did you bring my daughter here?" she demanded, voice firm.

Fett took a moment. "I was under the impression you would want to see your child again."

Verana let out a humorless laugh, shaking her head. Her hair waved out behind her slightly, and the small beads in her hairpin clicked together.

"Do not toy with me, bounty hunter," she warned him, "You must have passed several Imperial outposts on your way to Coruscant- why bring Tinari _here _instead?"

"She was damaged during the trip; I knew you or the Rebels would pay more for her in the end, no matter the condition."

Fett wasn't expecting to actually _feel_ the surge of anger coming from this woman. He had apparently offended her. Verana visibly composed herself, distractedly tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Her jaw clenched and Fett knew her anger was gone.

"I hope you treated her well," she said, "Or there will be consequences."

Boba Fett allowed himself a laugh. "I highly doubt that."

"Do you?" Verana asked him, eyes narrowed.

"Of course. Those are strong words…especially for a Jedi."

Verana had firmly kept eye contact with him until that moment. Her gaze faltered, and though it was only for a moment, she had given herself away. To his surprise, she laughed.

"You dare to call me a Jedi?" Verana's lips parted into a smile and she crossed her arms again, standing at an angle. "That is quite the first for me. I have a husband and children; no Jedi is allowed such things."

The bounty hunter lifted his shoulders in a slight shrug.

"That just makes you disobedient. It doesn't hide what you are."

Verana's lips tightened into a straight line as she looked at him. Fett knew in that moment she was frightened of him; her expression did nothing to betray her fear, but he was sure of it. She moved from the window, slowly letting her arms drop to her sides. She stopped at the corner of the desk and faced him again.

"And how can you be so sure?"

Her voice was almost a whisper. Fett tilted his head.

"I know one when I see one."

Verana raised her eyebrows. "Then you must have an ability, as well."

"No," Fett countered, "Any Mandalorian can recognize his enemy."

He was already in motion even as the silver shape came tumbling from beneath the desk and into her hands. The familiar snap-hiss ignition of a lightsaber pierced the silence; Fett could see a flash of bright gold before Verana suddenly cried out in pain. She fell back a few paces to lean against the window for support. The saber deactivated as it tumbled to the floor and rolled to a stop at Boba Fett's feet. He had barely moved during the whole incident; only his left wrist was raised in front of him.

"You're pretty good- I'll give you that, _Jedi_."

Verana pushed herself from the window, holding her right arm. Grimacing in pain, chest heaving, she stared at him. Her fingers were wrapped tightly around the metal fins of a small dart.

"So tell me, _bounty hunter_- how long do I have?"

"It isn't lethal," Fett informed her, "Just a paralyzing agent. It will stop before it reaches your chest." He pointed and added, "You can take it out, now."

Verana yanked the wrist dart from her flesh and tossed it aside, where it plinked on to the floor. She gritted her teeth as numbness began to spread through her entire arm.

"I missed, actually; you caught me by surprise," said Fett.

A clattering sound caught his attention and he realized the lightsaber was rolling across the floor. He promptly brought his boot down upon it to stop the movement.

"Ah, no more of that." Fett paused to level his rifle at her chest. "I mean it."

Verana shook the hair from her eyes and made a small sound of pain as her arm tingled uncomfortably. She could hardly move it. Fett remained still, the rifle unwavering in his grip.

"All right," Verana began, "You can take me away just like they took my husband, but leave my children alone!"

Fett was seemingly unaffected by her plea.

"So your son is one, too."

He watched her blink back the sting of tears. "He has no hold on his power- it's only instinctive. And my Tinari…" Verana sighed shakily. "She is just like her father…"

For a moment, Boba Fett stared at her. She must have thought he was coming to kill her, or turn her in to the Empire. Verana grimaced once more at the pain in her arm.

"Your hatred of the Jedi blinds you," she said, "It is needless hate, Boba Fett."

Despite his best efforts not to react, a fresh wave of anger coursed through his veins. His finger flexed over the trigger and he had to deliberately force himself not to shoot.

"Your people murdered mine," Fett hissed, "A Jedi murdered my father! And for what? The 'good' of the Republic? To bring balance to that mystical lie you believe in?" He shook his head disgustedly. "You are the one who is blind."

"I understand your pain; I don't deny it!" Verana countered desperately.

"Typical Jedi arrogance. You only think you understand."

She shook her head. "I _can_. I never hated your people- I respected them."

"Respect is one thing. Living as I have, as my people have, is another," Fett growled.

"My husband is Mandalorian!!" Verana practically sobbed.

Her words thoroughly surprised him. Fett watched as her shoulders rose and fell slightly with each breath, her hair shining brightly with the red light of the sun. She took his silence as an opportunity to speak.

"I lived on Concord Dawn with him for ten years. Both of my children were born there and I can speak the language fluently; what else can I tell you to prove I am not your enemy, Boba Fett?"

Her voice was soft, almost pleading. Tears had appeared at the corners of her eyes. Fett refused to fully allow himself to buy into her sympathy.

"It's amazing a Jedi could last that long amongst Mandalorians," he said, "Two Jedi, from what I've seen. But that still does not-"

"Listen to me," Verana interrupted, "I had always hoped, as soon as I learned of the wars fought between your people and mine, that I would be able to speak to a Mandalorian without all the animosity of the past. I learned the culture and was accepted into it!"

She drew herself up to full height, still struggling through the pain in her arm. Verana stared into his eyes again and spoke.

"Aside from having my children, the most important thing that happened to me during those ten years…was the fact that I finally had a family. I had people who cared about me, accepted me, loved me."

She dared to walk up to him, so close the barrel of Fett's rifle grazed her shoulder. Verana pointed a finger on to the armor that protected his chest.

"I would die for a Mandalorian, Boba Fett. _Know that_."

He could only stare at her. Her words hung in the air for several seconds, powerful, earnest words. Verana turned away from him and faced the window, training her eyes on the sky visible through the buildings. She spoke again, only in a much gentler voice.

"Do what you must." Verana looked at him from over her shoulder. "But I am truly sorry for all that has happened."

Boba Fett couldn't find words to respond, in spite of the fact he wanted to. He had never heard a Jedi apologize to anyone or anything; those whom he had meant never seemed to realize the importance of the past, to acknowledge it as something that could have effects beyond their realization. Verana was the first to ever say those words to him. _I am sorry_…

It would not bring his father back, nor would it dissolve all the damage of the wars fought…but it was good to hear.

Fett carefully knelt to pick up the fallen lightsaber from the floor. Verana watched him cautiously, turning around to face him. Her arms were folded tight across her chest. He shifted his weight, still looking over the weapon, admiring is intricate design. Sunlight fell warmly on to the silver as he held it in his fingers. Fett lowered his rifle and held the lightsaber out to the Jedi.

"Thank-you," he said.

She took the lightsaber from his hand and held it in her palm; he was granted a small smile. Boba Fett only nodded his reply.


	11. A Debt Accepted

**Author's note: Short but sweet. Enjoy! I'll see you at the epilogue… ;)**

At Verana's request, the Rebels had relinquished a speeder bike to Fett for the journey back through Coruscant. Two-hundred and fifty thousand credits had been deposited in his personal credit account, and Fett was pleased to see the Jedi woman was true to her word. He stood inspecting the vehicle in the garage, nudging a few panels with the tip of his boot to make sure they would hold.

"It won't fall apart," said a voice.

Fett turned to look over his shoulder and saw Verana's son Tory standing behind him, hands buried in his pockets. The teen raised his eyebrows and smirked.

"I promise."

Fett faced the speeder once again and remained silent. Tory took almost hesitant steps forward to stand on his right, inspecting the vehicle as well. Fett could see persistence ran in the family.

"Why should I take your word for it?" he asked him, nudging the panels again.

Tory laughed shortly. "Because it's my speeder."

The bounty hunter looked over at him, then. A grin had crossed the boy's face, and he finally looked his age. Unkempt dark hair nearly covered his eyes and he wore ragged clothing stained with grease and dotted with holes. He looked very similar to the images Fett had seen of Samuel Luna, though the teen had his mother's eyes.

"She's pretty reliable, I'd say," Tory went on, "Just watch out, because she's pretty touchy. I guarantee you'll be taking some sharp turns."

"I'll manage," said Fett.

Tory smirked again and folded his arms, revealing a tattoo: the exact symbol painted on the left shoulder plate of Fett's armor.

"We found what's left of another speeder outside…would that be yours by any chance?" he asked.

"I borrowed it."

Tory laughed, but quickly muffled it once he realized Fett was not amused. He cleared his throat.

"Sorry about your luck…"

They fell into an uncomfortable silence, which was clearly more awkward for Tory than it was for Fett. The boy bit his lip, as if deciding on something.

"I want to tell you something," he said, "Before you leave and I never get the chance again."

Fett faced him, leaning against the speeder. Tory sighed, lifting his gaze to the T-visor of the helmet.

"…Ever since I could read, I've read stories about you. Most of them probably weren't true but…" Tory paused to laugh, shaking his head, "A kid can imagine."

Fett could see the teen was fighting against his thoughts with each word. But the bounty hunter was patient.

"Anyway…I just wanted to let you know that I always admired how you stuck to what you believed in." Tory almost winced, but caught himself. "That's it."

Fett turned back to inspecting the speeder, and the boy's shoulders slouched.

"I'm not a hero. Do not mistake me for one."

Tory frowned. "Well, I don't believe that."

"You can believe what you want," Fett told him with a slight shrug, "That would be the Jedi in you."

The boy laughed at him, a strangely staccato laugh, revealing a wide smile. Grinning, he said,

"So you do have a sense of humor."

Fett did not grant him a response. Tory just shook his head. Before he could say anymore, a little voice suddenly shouted over him.

"Wait!"

Both Fett and Tory turned to see Tinari running toward them, having just appeared from behind the twin blast doors. Verana followed close behind her, seemingly surprised by her daughter's speed. Tinari's reddish-blonde hair bobbed widely out behind her as she ran. Snoo was tucked under one of her arms and she nearly dropped the stuffed animal as she came to a stop a few feet away from Boba Fett, panting.

"You can't leave, yet," she gasped.

Tinari struggled to catch her breath, tucking strands of hair back behind the headband she now wore, smoothing down the wrinkles in her new outfit- a light blue dress with a small sash tied at the back. Interestingly enough, she was still wearing her beat-up traveling boots. Fett thought she looked more like the girl he'd seen in the wanted poster rather than the stowaway he had found. For some reason it felt like months ago.

"What is it?" he asked her.

Tinari would have spoken, but noticed her brother standing off to her left. She made a face and pushed at his legs.

"Hey!" he exclaimed.

"I want to talk to Boba Fett in _private_," Tinari declared, "Go away."

Tory did not seem willing to leave, but his sister wouldn't have it. She practically slugged him to get him walking and he finally complied, moving to stand several feet away where Verana waited. Once he was out of earshot, Tinari heaved a sigh and looked up at Boba Fett.

He waited for what she had to say as her eyes somehow locked with his. She suddenly threw her arms around his waist and squeezed the bounty hunter in a tight embrace. Fett froze, his arms awkwardly held at his sides.

"Thank you for bringing me back," Tinari told him, managing to squeeze him just a bit tighter, "Thank you for helping me."

Fett could not find words, truly surprised. He hesitantly pat her on the head and she pulled away from him, tucking her hands behind her back. She was beaming; Fett could only stare. He looked past her and saw the Jedi woman covering up a smile with her fingers. Her son held back laughter.

"There is no need to thank me," he said at last, "I'm only doing my job."

Tinari nodded. "I know that. But I just wanted to let you know I was thankful."

"…You've made your point." Fett paused to reach for something in one of the pockets on his belt. "I believe this belongs to you."

He held out a small pouch to her, and she squealed in recognition.

"My Jax! I _knew_ you'd give 'em back!"

She happily took the little pouch in her hands, rattling the trinkets inside. A frown suddenly creased her forehead, as if she were thinking. Fett watched as she reached beneath the collar of her shirt and grasped a black cord, pulling it over her head. She presented it to him.

"I want you to have this."

Fett shook his head. "That won't be necessary."

But she had already pressed the object into his hand. He looked down at it, seeing a pendant hung from the end of the cord- a bronze disk with a jewel in the center that glittered green and blue in the light.

"You don't have to wear it," Tinari explained, "It's something from Arbola- I got it when I was little. It's meant to protect travelers, y'know-to keep them safe?"

She smiled at him as he turned the pendant over in his fingers.

"I don't need it anymore, but I think you do. Maybe you won't get in so many fights."

Fett almost laughed. "Perhaps."

He tucked the necklace safely away before turning to look down at her. She was still smiling, hugging Snoo close to her and rocking side to side.

"…I do have a question for you," Fett admitted.

"What is it?"

"Why did you choose my ship? There were plenty of different ones there- why choose mine to stow away?"

Tinari's grin broadened. "Because out of all my heroes, I knew you'd be the one I could trust the most. Mandalorians always look out for one another."

The bounty hunter looked over her one final time, feeling a slight smile curve his lips.

"Of course."

He finally turned to head for the speeder bike, slinging his leg over the side. Verana and Tory walked closer, the former putting her hands on her daughter's shoulders. As the speeder whined to life, Verana said,

"My family and I- we are forever indebted to you, bounty hunter."

"I'll take that debt, Jedi," Fett returned, hitting a switch on the control panel. He turned to face her and added, "It's almost a shame I couldn't meet your husband."

Verana looked clearly surprised. "Really? Why do you say that?"

"I have a lot of questions."

She couldn't help laughing. Ahead, the door to the hideout opened, revealing the patch of permacrete outside, lit by a pool of gold light. Tinari took a step forward as the speeder's engine revved.

"Good bye, Boba Fett," she told him.

He looked over at her and gestured with his hand in a small salute.

"Good bye, Tinari," he replied.

Twisting the speeder's accelerator, the bike went racing for the doorway. Tinari followed after him, running to the threshold and squinting in the fading sun as Boba Fett zoomed into the streets of the Orange District and soon disappeared from sight.

She stood there for a long while and watched the faint silhouettes of the various vehicles intersect across the sky. With a small sigh, Tinari turned and walked back the way she had come as the door closed behind her with a slight thud. Tory tousled her hair affectionately as she passed him. Hugging Snoo tight, she continued almost aimlessly on her path, eventually climbing the stairs back to her mother's quarters. By then the sunlight had all but faded, save for a dull glow of scarlet in the sky.

Tinari sat in the small patch of sunlight, placing Snoo beside her. With a wistful sigh, she reached for her Jax, untying the twine that held the pouch in place. She turned it upside down and the contents spilled across the floor in a glorious flash of colors. The bouncing ball thudded against the window pane. Oddly, there came a strange clattering noise, one she was not used to hearing. Frowning, Tinari threw the empty bag aside and reached for the new object. To her surprise, it was a small little holoscreen, with a piece of flimsy encased within it. A line of small, neat handwriting was visible.

Feeling a grin creeping across her lips, Tinari read it. The words were simple, but said enough, much like the man who had written them.

'_A Mandalorian never forgets, especially those whom he calls friend_.'

Tinari beamed, gazing out the wide window up at the crowded skies of Coruscant. She caught sight of a flash of yellow-orange far above in the patch of dark blue, knowing it was _Slave I_ heading back through the atmosphere. As she watched the light flicker and grow faint, the last line of words came to mind.

'_And 'good-bye' in Mando'a truly means, 'we will meet again._'"

_Slave I_ vanished.


	12. Epilogue

**Author's note: Well…it's the end. I'm really going to miss writing this one. It was a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing, and I hope to see you next story. ;) Cheers! ~Captain Hilts. **

Within the cold, industrial corridors of the Imperial Star Destroyer _Minerva_, Admiral Voranson waited for the status report. His subordinates watched on almost wearily, knowing how furious he had been. They feared him almost in the same way they feared Lord Vader, knowing their Admiral was worthy of the same discipline. He had their utmost respect and obedience, and rightfully so.

Voranson, a tall lean man with dark hair, had been involved with the Empire since its inception; to be faced with a dilemma such as this was more than embarrassing- he could very well be risking his life.

Prisoners of the Empire were not meant to escape.

The fact that one had managed to do so under his watch was disgraceful. It had only happened the previous day, in the late hours of the evening. Voranson had been alerted of the incident almost instantly, but the search efforts had been fruitless. The Admiral was certain someone on the inside had helped to secure Samuel Luna's escape. What made it worse was the fact that Luna was audacious enough to steal Voranson's personal shuttle.

"Mandalorian scum," he hissed under his breath.

Voranson would have admired the man's tenacity if he had not have been working against the Empire for nearly seven years. And with Luna's daughter still running around with that valuable information, it was even more grating on Voranson's reputation.

"Sir?"

He turned. "What can you tell me, Lieutenant?"

The man hesitated, but only a moment. "I'm sorry, sir, but it appears our security system was hacked in order to allow the illegal departure of your shuttle…unfortunately, we do not know where it was headed."

Voranson pursed his lips and sighed. He gave his Lieutenant a curt nod.

"Very well. At least scan the surveillance screens and find out when the clearance code of my shuttle was used within the fleet. Let's at least _try _to find where Luna was headed."

"Yes, Admiral."

Voranson dismissed the Lieutenant, heading back to the command deck. He tucked his hands behind his back and stared out at the vast viewports, focusing his stern gaze on the expanse of stars.

Word of Luna's escape had yet to reach Lord Vader, but the Admiral could imagine his reaction. He swallowed hard at the realization, knowing he had to find where Luna was headed before Vader contacted him; it would just be enough to save his life…

"Admiral, sir?"

He turned expectantly, grateful to be snapped from his thoughts.

"Yes, what is it?"

The young Lieutenant looked almost confused.

"Sir...our sensors have picked up a _Firespray_-class ship. It is awaiting permission to-"

"Allow him to dock with us at once," Voranson interrupted.

The Lieutenant saluted. "Right away, sir."

Voranson trained his eyes back through the forward viewport, spying the familiar outline of the ship he knew as _Slave I_. If a bounty hunter had come to visit, it meant he had found something important, and with one as skilled and proficient as Boba Fett, Voranson knew it was something critical indeed.

It took mere minutes for _Slave I _to dock with the _Minerva_. The Admiral instinctively straightened his posture once the heavy blast door leading to the command deck slid aside, admitting the bounty hunter.

Boba Fett looked as menacing and deadly as ever, one gloved hand still clenching the long EE-3 blaster rifle at his side. His distinctive green armor was pockmarked with more silvery scars and darkened with scoring marks than the previous time Fett and Voranson had met. His boots echoed loudly against the polished floors as he walked closer.

"A pleasure to see you again, Boba Fett," Voranson greeted him, "What brings you this far into the Mid Rim?"

"Business."

The Admiral raised his eyebrows. "Is that so?"

"I have come to collect the bounty for Tinari Luna," Fett said.

There was silence as Voranson took in the importance of that statement. If Fett did have the filthy little urchin, several wrongs could be righted- and Samuel would come back for her. Voranson allowed himself a slight smile and nodded.

"I had heard about the child attracting a lot of attention lately- I congratulate you on a job well done." He took a brief glance around. "Now then…where is she?"

Fett said nothing. The young Admiral simply smiled.

"I cannot pay you unless the child is-"

Voranson barely had time to react as the bounty hunter tossed something to him. It appeared to be an old cloth of some kind, like a cloak. Something was wrapped within it. The Admiral cringed.

"What is this?"

"Open it."

Almost hesitantly, Voranson did so. Surprisingly, it was a group of items: a holoprojector and two familiar information devices…

"I found the child, but she had taken ill- I believe it was some kind of fever," Fett explained, "She died before I could even get her on my ship. Those items were in her possession."

Voranson studied the objects in his palm intently.

"I see…well, that's a shame."

"When do I get paid?" Fett asked.

The Admiral laughed. "You did not bring back the child, bounty hunter."

Fett took a few slow, precise steps forward. He pointed and Voranson flinched.

"Those items are what hold value. She was merely what carrying them. Therefore- you owe me."

"I'm afraid I cannot-"

Fett leaned forward threateningly. "I am not asking, I'm telling you, _Admiral_. No creature has ever cheated me out of my credits and lived to tell about it."

Voranson attempted to swallow the lump in his throat. The hunter in Mandalorian armor had gotten dangerously close, his fingers tensing over the trigger of the blaster rifle. The braided Wookie scalps that hung from his right shoulder brushed the front of Voranson's uniform. He managed a short laugh and cleared his throat.

"Well…I wouldn't even think to cheat you out of anything, Boba Fett…"

* * *

Five-hundred thousand credits. He couldn't remember the last time such an amount had been deposited into his personal account.

Not that it troubled him.

_Slave I_ had left the _Minerva_ and its miserably arrogant Admiral behind. All that lay before Boba Fett and his ship was the infinite vista of stars. As he set the conditions for autopilot, he caught a peculiar shape on the transparisteel of the viewport: markings of lopsided hearts. Fett smirked beneath his helmet.

Amazingly, he found himself aware that he was actually going to miss Tinari, the little thief whom he had first found hidden in the narrow spaces of his ship. A little girl who asked nothing but questions he didn't or couldn't answer; one who had caused him more than enough trouble, who had reminded him of his forgotten culture and childhood. It would take some getting used to, not having a pint-sized co-pilot brimming with energy, who referred to one of Fett's greatest rivals as a childish 'monster.'

He _was _going to miss her.

Fett turned in his seat, digging into his pocket to find the small necklace she had given him. He inspected the jewel as he opened the nearby storage locker containing the book his father had given him so long ago. Gently, he set the necklace atop it, remembering what Tinari had said about it protecting travelers. Now he had two items to help him, should he ever need it.

Just as he closed the compartment, something beeped for his attention on the control panel. Fett slumped back into the captain's chair and brought up the message on the computer screen. Jabba the Hutt had requested his presence on Tatooine; he would be paid for his trouble, of course. The message did not say much other than that, but Fett could tell it would be something worthwhile.

With a slight sigh, he set coordinates for the desert world into the navicomputer and the stars elongated through the viewport. Once into the quiet of hyperspace, he reached for the small, circular object that had been sitting on the control panel- the one thing he hadn't given to Voranson.

Though he was no Jedi, Boba Fett would find a way to open the holocron. Thoughtfully, he rolled it in his palm, turning it over with his fingers. It was a long journey to Tatooine, but that gave him plenty of time.

He always saved the best mysteries for himself.


End file.
